Currency c. mid 20th century

This iron piece called 'Currency' by Angas or Afo, lives at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. The rusted color seems so inevitable. It could almost be something unearthed. It's as if the material itself is the message here. You can’t separate the making from the weathering. The surface has this great rough texture; I want to touch it! It feels both ancient and modern at the same time, like a Tony Cragg sculpture maybe. The process of its making is obvious; you can see where it's been worked. The form is so simplified – that almost comical ‘handle’ shape at the top. I love how the form, material, and title all collide, suggesting value, labor, and time. It seems as though it’s saying something about history, about worth, and about the slow transformations that time enacts. All of which are a kind of currency, right?