Anna Chinn examines, and plays with, the contents of Dunedin gutters.
I sat cross-legged in front of it and happily made a little pile of grime. Into the pile of grime, I stuck a plastic thingee found in the gutter. The plastic thingee looked like some kind of information sign.
In my imagination, two scenes competed for primacy. In one, the hole in the kerb was a naturally formed cave, home to glow worms and native bats, and maybe also a subterranean stream wearing away the limestone.
The sign was, therefore, a Department of Conservation one telling visitors about the glow worms and the bats, and urging them not to use flash photography.
In the other, the hole in the kerb was the entrance to an underground coal mine.
The sign was, therefore, a mining company one, warning unauthorised persons not to go near the shaft.
The colour yellow can be used to indicate hazards. Had an explosion already occurred and the mine was still volatile?
I could not decide.
