I know an eccentric gentleman who keeps a list of things-to-do on a set of 5” x 7” notecards. He employs an elaborate system involving very small impeccable handwriting that cover every inch of the card, colored ink and a few highlighters.
Instead of discarding these lists when he is done he saves them as a record. I am not sure why he keeps them, but the documents are compelling. I have for a long time considered them art worthy of an exhibition. The image shown here is a list that my son made. The text appears on both the front and back of the sheet. The paper is folded several times so it could fit into a custom leather pocket protector he designed for the pant leg pocket of his Carhart jeans. The list was kept with a pen, a small metal ruler and probably a few other items he did not reveal to his father. His list reminded me of my friend’s list and rekindled my fascination with how we plan out and order our lives in an attempt to get things done. The items on a to-do list are deeply personal and at first glance might seem mundane.
However, the items constitute a step-by-step plan of action to accomplish larger life goals and objectives. These lists not only reveal the way we see ourselves interacting with the world but illuminate our strategies to obtain what we hold most dear. These tend to be innocent private documents that are developed without pretense – a diary of actions taken, perhaps postponed or ignored entirely. I keep lists, but I never save them. For me the act of discarding my list is cathartic and provides a momentary but significant pleasure. My lists are often kept on my phone and items erased as they are completed. When we get an opportunity to examine these documents in physical form, we should recognize we are looking at art. Art in perhaps its most unpretentious, pragmatic and revealing form.