Commissioned for the 2020 exhibition The Perilous Texas Adventures of Mark Dion, Dion’s installation was the culmination of the artist’s travels through Texas. Over the course of four years, he made a series of trips inspired by northeastern “Yankee” artists and naturalists who visited the state during the 19th century, including John James Audubon, Sarah Ann Lillie Hardinge, Frederick Law Olmsted, and Charles Wright.

Along the way, Dion met with local experts and gathered thousands of items, which he sorted, organized, and displayed in this custom-built cherry cabinet. The varied contents include everything from a black widow spider to the shampoo and breakfast cereal from the artist’s hotel stays, as well as cigar boxes, bottle caps, scout badges, and wooden duck decoys. Collectively, these objects offer an eclectic glimpse of Texas’s rich history and culture while engaging a long tradition of artist-naturalists who attempted to capture the essence of the region during their travels.

—Text taken from the Carter Handbook (2023)