What challenges does exhibiting a work pose to the inherent muteness of objects? How do artists choose to speak on behalf of inanimate artifacts and byproducts of material culture and the natural world? This volume coincides with an exhibition that examines these questions and is organized around the idea that objects possess narrative histories that the conventions of display can only, at best, approximate. The book is illustrated with works by Darren Bader, Kasper Bosmans, Carol Bove, Andrea B��ttner, Jason Dodge, Haris Epaminonda, Iman Issa, Hassan Khan, Antonio Vega Macotela, Jill Magid, Dave McKenzie, Christodoulos Panayiotou, and others.