Object-Based Research Critique

Words: 1340
Pages: 6

Valarie Steele says in her article, (1998; A Museum of Fashion is More than a Clothes bag) that, “Object based research provides unique insights into the historic and aesthetic development of fashion”. She then adds her view on object analysis: “You can read all the books in the world, but the best way to get accurate knowledge out of your object is to analyse it yourself”. Using Prown’s book, (Mind in Matter: An Introduction to Material Culture Theory and Method 1994), we introduce the stages being used to ‘read an object’ which is; “Description, Deduction and Speculation”.

When researching candles online I ordered the Courting Candle on eBay, from the United States Leesburg as I could not find any to buy in England. The candle holder intrigued me with its spiral design; I wanted to find out why it was designed in such a way. Lesley M. M. Blume describes the usage of a courting candle in her book on (Let’s Bring Back: An Encyclopaedia of Forgotten yet Delightful, 2010). She states that
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“Engage with the materials used within the object, using all senses, touch, smell, feel and hearing”. To understand the object clearly both from the cultural and historical points of view, to then back up as evidence for questions that need to be answered at the Speculation stage.
You can see that the Courting Candle has been well used due to the rust and discolouring on the iron, also the varnish on the wood has minor dints and scratches. The comparison of the feel of the metal and the wood are completely different. The wrought iron feels lifeless and cold, as the wooden base brings warmth into the object. As we know the courting candle was used as a method of time for the fathers, researching online we find that the handle at the top of the spiral cord was used to hang on walls, like how you now hang clocks on walls to get a clear view of the