This ebony and walnut cello modulates from musical instrument to sculpture with careful carving conducted by artist Debra Hand. Sections of texture retool ordinarily smooth surfaces on the cello’s body. Thin, curved grooves delineate metallic grey indentions, black ridges, and brown depressions, punctuated by two light grey medallions. The Chicago-based artist began working with strings after the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra commissioned her to create a work of art with a violin. She typically replaces an instrument’s strings in the wrong order both to discourage playing and to confirm the artwork’s new visual identity.