One fine fall weekend, Joanna Davis and Libby Modern of Modern Art invited all visitors to play a new game called Truth or Drawer. The rules were as follows:
Truth or Drawer is a game for one player at a time. The player chooses between two options: Truth or Drawer. If the player picks Truth then they are led to a seat and the Truth is delivered to him/her. If the player picks Drawer then they are instructed to choose a drawer from our Aqua Cabinet of Mysteries. Each drawer contains an art dare. Whether the player chooses T or D, they have to follow though with the chosen option. The player will be rewarded with a prize after completing their Truth or Drawer.

Players who picked Truth sat on our couch and a person dressed in a gorilla suit walked out from another room towards the player and presented a tray of cards. Each card revealed a provocative, perceived truth about humanity. When read in the context of Modern Art, a jovial place, the somber messages usually surprised the reader. As a reward, the player is told that s/he may keep the card on his/her person with the recommendation of contemplating it from time to time. The players who chose to pull a drawer found messages such as:

Compose and mail a thank you note to someone,
Put on a gorilla suit, Take this $5 and go buy a drink of your choice at the Chestnut Hill Cafe.
Find the book “Ready to Use Old-Fashioned Animal Cuts.” Turn to page 18. Pick a creature. Cut it out. name it. Take it home with you.
Stand in the window as a display for 5 minutes.
Pick album. Play it on the record player.
Make a bouquet out things you find in a one block radius.

Below are some stories from that day (all photos by Sara Code Kroll)

Jenny Picks Truth:

Dog Dare: find the book titled “Ready to use old-fashioned animal cuts”, turn to page 7, find the smallest dog (do not be distracted by the oversized cat head), bark loudly at this dog.

Some of our sobering truths, courtesy of the gorilla in the back

Steve’s dare: Hop on the Nicole ArtBike and deliver posters to some local businesses. (He’s game!)

Cheryl’s Dare: Find the book “Ready to Use Old-Fashioned Animal Cuts. Turn to page 7. Find the solo cat head. Write a poem about this lovely sweet cat head. Leave the poem in this drawer. (She rocked it!)

Chris’ Dare: Find a National Geographic magazine. Find a picture that speaks to you. Cut it out. Crumble it up. Put in in your mouth and chew. Chew. Chew. Chew. Chew. Chew. Chew. (delicious!)

Dan’s and Lynnea’s Dare: Take a picture of something or someone at Modern Art. Find a good spot to hang it.

TRUTH OR DRAWER: An exploration of creativity, fear & risk