Two Chairs and a Conversation: “Imagine Trading Interest Rates as an Orange Juice Company…” by Madeline Finn (2013)
My chairs will facilitate the conversation between my father and me as he attempts to explain what he does for a living. I was twelve years old I first initiated this discussion. For years to come I would return to the question, often over dinner. He always began with the same sentence: “Imagine trading interest rates as an orange juice company…” My understanding of his occupation within the stock market has never fully developed beyond this sentence. I became distracted, frequently complaining that this paradigm did not effectively describe what he was actually doing all day: sitting and staring at five computer screens. The chairs embody our limited discussion on the subject. The seats are positioned similarly to the top of an orange juice carton. The experience of sitting in the chairs will mimic the frustration and confusion that transpired during my father’s explanation. In juxtaposition to the seat of the chair, the back will resemble the kitchen chairs where we spoke about the topic.