The Keys

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    Photo: Thomas Birdwell
1996
Coins, jewelry, buttons, keys, glass cabochons, wood, toys, paint, on wood
80 x 30 inches
Collection of
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Gift of the Souls Grown Deep Foundation
Description

"Ruby Diamond is one of the most important people here in Tallahassee, very wealthy, has a lot of power. Owned a big motel. She died, left some of her possessions with her driver, Smiley. He offered to sell me some of it. I found a big box of Ruby Diamond's keys, keys that had been used to open a lot of motel-room doors. Ruby Diamond donated a lot of money to Florida State University for a big auditorium. She opened a lot of doors for people. I thought about that. I didn't know if she was a Christian woman or not, but she had a good heart. She opened doors here on earth. I used her keys as a symbol around Christ, who has the keys to heaven or hell. He can open the right door for us."