Description: Jar-like vessel made of styrofoam, paper, wax, plastic and cardboard. Wider at the top than at the base. It is a rounded figure with sharp divisions resulting from the layering of material. The rim of the vessel and the lid fit together sealing the contents of the vessel inside. The vessel thus resembles a sealed jar. The interior is paper lined with wax. A coating of styrofoam has been added to the outside surface. This adds texture to the exterior of the vessel. A lid made of white plastic seals the vessel, except for a small hole in the upper surface of the rim. Finally, a brown strip of corrugated brown cardboard, called a jacket, surrounds the middle of the vessel. It is secured in place by means of two slits that lock the strip into a circular shape. Both the plastic lid and cardboard jacket are removable.

Construction: The object is extremely light, insubstantial and malleable. It can be easily crushed, but tends to return to its former form. The style is complicated with many additional features--jacket, lid, wax, styrofoam--added to the original paper. Engraved into the styrofoam exterior are green coffee beans and two Grabbajabba logos, one red and black, the other red and yellow. The words "Grabbajabba fine coffee" frame the top and bottom. The jacket has a squared corrugated pattern decorated by the word "JavaJacket", three black recycle symbols, a website address, the name of the company that produced it, and a serial number. The lid also features the brand name DIXIE, a warning of "Caution, Contains Hot" on the edge, and a series of circular symbols. The DIXIE name is accentuated by curved lines, which also compliment the hole on the surface of the rim. The presence of the brand name and serial number suggests that the object is factory made.

Speculation: The jar-like appearance of the vessel suggests that it is a sealed container with the small hole in the top providing a path for escape. If the object is held around the middle (hand placed over jacket) the series of layers insulates the hand from contact with the vessel.

Provenance: This object was acquired in a coffee shop and was used by myself to transport coffee from the shop to a meeting where I drank the coffee. I was also able to drink the coffee "on the run" with the aid of the hole in the lid. The coffee, thus, did not loose heat, though I was able to consume it outdoors. Normally, I would discard the object after drinking its contents.

Significance: The object was created to facilitate drinking hot liquids "on the run", to transport liquid from place to place without spillage, and to serve as a billboard advertising the Grabbajabba and DIXIE companies. Although the vessel is easily crushable, the materials are of a durable nature. Paradoxically, however, the object is not ecologically friendly. One can "dispose" of it by dumping it into the dustbin, but it will not degrade for years to come.

The object can thus represent a number of modern values particularly those that emphasize convenience over environmental considerations. The object may also be emblematic a situation in which people have little time to sit and drink coffee, but must drink while rushing from place to place.