ARTIFACT
PLAY SCHOOL
Who made this mysterious board game in FIT’s archive?
FIT’s Special Collections and FIT Archive, which houses 500,000 rare and unique works on paper, keeps detailed notes on the provenance of each item. However, this homemade board game, “The Triumphs and Tribulations of the FIT Student,” is an exception.
“I don’t know how it showed up here,” Tiffany Nixon, head of the unit, admits. “We don’t know anything about it.” What’s obvious is whoever made it knew the college very well.
Game tokens are based on majors—a Chanel eyebrow pencil sharpener for Cosmetics and Fragrance Marketing; an earring for Jewelry Design. Players progress from freshman to graduate by drawing cards: A good card? Become a Presidential Scholar and move up a level. Fail to register for a class or get kicked off the faculty and staff elevator? Down you go.
“Cheating is aloud [sic],” the rules say, “as long as you don’t get caught!”
Recognize this game? Give us a shout at [email protected]. Says Nixon, “It would be amazing if somebody came forward and said, ‘I made that!’”