The Paradox Boxes

    In 2024 I thought to remake boxes because of all the corrugated cardboard packaging that arrived in the mail, or from Amazon Prime, Jerry’s Artarama, Blick Art, Puritan’s Pride, Epson and other corporate sources every week. It seemed somehow tragic to, rip, cut, and smash all those boxes into the recycle bin. So, I thought to combine my meditation practice, art making, ideas about quantum theory with the Japanese conceptualization of contained space as something more intimate and spiritual – concepts like MA (negative space), Tsutsumi (wrapping), and Oku (deepening inwardness). And I thought to ask some questions about contained space, packaging and spirituality. 

 1. Can I transform the throw-away junk of a capitalist consumption-based civilization into more deeply spirited art objects? 

 2. What if these boxes / containers have no lid or opening device? 

 3. What is the meaning of an art object that obviously has something inside but cannot be or is demonstrably not to be opened. 

 4. If I put something that is so terribly limited into the potential of the contained space (Ma) that is decorated and wrapped in art about spirit and infinity (Tsutsumi) will that somehow open or relieve the constraint? 

 5. Can I do this to objects / concepts of political restraint? 

 6. Can I do this to forms of hate / prejudice? 

 7. Why not put wishes / prayers in the containers. 

 8. Can I place my fears, anger and hate into a boxes and hope that the Ma, Tsutsumi and Oku will help me to transform my limited spirit? 

 9. What if the repurposed box is empty? 

 10. What if I deconstruct the delivered box and make a new totally different kind of box? 

 11. What if the completely remade object is empty? 

 12. What does all this have to do with my own person as an aging gay, white middle class American in the final decade or (If I’m lucky) two decades of a long life? 

 13. Can I contain irony and send it out into the universe? 

 14. Who cares, other than me? 

     To date, I have made 66 of these decorated containers. My goal is to have 100 Paradox Boxes by the end of this year 2026. All of them are decorated with images of my artwork about initial singularities, convergent universes, and color transparency. Most have things inside, some do not. None of them have lids or openings because none of them are meant to be opened. I keep a catalog of the boxes that lists the kind and size of each shape as well as that which it contains. I think of the catalog as an art object in its own rite.