Finding Chaney in Free Gut

Chaney is a Crucian word, a creolism, combining the words ‘china’ and ‘money.’ The material got its name because children on the island found shards of porcelain in the ground which, after rounding the edges on large rocks or the pavement, used them as coins or toy money for playing games. The name also rhymes with ‘chain’ or ‘chaining.’ The chaining together of exchangeable values. The resonant linking of colonial luxury goods to the heavy chains around the necks of the enslaved who were also commoditized and prized possessions in the trade.

Chaney fragments can be found almost everywhere on the island: along shorelines, in the ocean, or washed up from the ground after a heavy rainfall. Of course, many are found during archaeological excavations. The fragments have undergone weathering and erosion rendering them smooth to the touch. The exposure to the elements has also changed the coloration on many of the pieces so they appear faded, just as stress from historical use has weakened the ceramic structure over time and caused them to break. The appearance of the pieces tells both a visual and haptic story of the porcelain’s journey through time and the elements.

Chaney fragments vary in size, from small, thumbnail-sized pieces to larger shards that can be several centimeters across. Examining them closely reveals details of faint cracks and intricate glazing. Edges of fragments are often jagged and uneven from breakages. On the pieces one notices intricate patterns and designs offering a glimpse of the original china pattern’s full decorative features in a cut-up style, as mediated by their status as refuse and years underground or underwater. Signs of use – cracks, chips, and faded colors – contribute to the visual narrative of time’s passage and what has been lost. The contrast between the intact portions of scenery and the broken fragments creates a dynamic visual tension. The pristine and damaged coexist, highlighting the duality of preservation and decay. These broken scenes evoke a sense of narrative resonance. They prompt viewers/users to imagine the context in which the china was brought to the island and used. They encourage viewers to think about the events that led to the breakage and the stories that connect these fragmented pieces to a larger historico-material processual development.

Patterns might include delicate floral motifs (such as roses, peonies, chrysanthemums, and lotus blossoms), geometric shapes, or scenic depictions of landscapes (often exotic, dream-like Chinese-blue scenes or homely, nostalgic European landscapes for the colonizer-consumers) with mountains and rivers evoking a sense of beauty and serenity.[1] Many porcelain pieces are additionally adorned with geometric patterns, like lattice designs. The decorative details reflect the deep cultural and artistic heritage associated with this ceramic art form deriving from China. The Silk Road and maritime trade routes helped spread Chinese porcelain to other parts of the world, where it was valued as an exotic high-quality product. This spurred an international demand which further elevated its luxury status.

Intuitively, by holding a fragment in your hand, you can understand how the once cohesive image shattered into multiple pieces and spread out in all directions. The fragment testifies to an incompleteness in the aesthetic narrative, inviting us to mentally reconstruct the original scene or to use our imaginations to fill in the gaps of the missing pieces, like in a puzzle. There is a melancholic beauty to the disrupted idyllic scenes. The brokenness adds a layer of depth of emotion to the visual dimension. Now they form a mosaic of forms of presences and absences woven together.