What appears to be a glass of water stands on a glass shelf high above the viewer,
in the manner of Michael Craig-Martin's famous work,
"An Oak Tree".
As with that work, a piece of A4 paper is attached to the wall with the following text.
Craig-Martin's text here.
Q. Is that supposed to be an oak tree?
A. Is what supposed to be an oak tree?
Q. That glass of water up there
A. Oh! How did that get there?
Q. Don't be a smartarse. Is it supposed to be an oak tree?
A. No, no, not at all
Q. So it's just a glass of water on a shelf, then?
A. Definitely not. It's an art work.
Q. So if it's not an oak tree and it's not a glass of water, what is it?
A. I don't know. I haven't decided yet.
Q. So, at least for now, it is still a glass of water on …
A. No, not at all. I've decided it isn't that, I just haven't decided what it is.
Q. It still looks like a glass of water.
A. Of course it does. It will always possess the accidents of a glass of water.
Q. Accidents?
A. Now you're being the smartarse.
The colour, feel, weight, size...
Q. But until you decide, what is it?
A. I've no idea. That's far too philosophical for me.
It probably occupies some state between being something and not being anything.
Q. A state of potential, perhaps?
A. If you like. Or limbo.
Q. Is it meant as a homage to Michael Craig Martin's An Oak Tree or as a piss-take?
A. Neither. A reference maybe but no more than that.
Q. Isn't the idea still rather unoriginal?
A. Of course it's unoriginal, it's post-bloody-modern, isn't it?
It's an intertextual reference, furthering the conceptual discourse and all that crap.
Q. So it's not and never will be an oak tree, it's not a glass of water,
though it has been and still possesses the accidents of a glass of water,
and what it actually is, or rather is becoming, has yet to be decided?
A. That's about the size of it, yes.
Q. When will you get round to deciding what it is?
A. Who knows?
Q. I don't think you ever will. Isn't this state of limbo in fact the idea behind the work?
A. No, I'm just a lazy bastard.