Relics of a Bygone Era (working title), 2009
A found object, a sculpture, a relic, an object of fetish, a bible, a catalogue, an instructions manual, a reference, a truth, an indication, a joke, a blasphemy, a discovery, trash, gold, worthless and priceless. This archaeological finding, an Argos catalogue left in decay on top of a bus stop for an unknown period of time, aims to rethink the value of capitalism within fictionalised historical parameters. This value will then be symbolically translated under its own capitalist conditions in a collaborative process wherein a large group of volunteers will sum the total cost of products under a category of their choice, discovering the sum-total value of the catalogue’s complete range of products. The catalogue will then be put on sale for this astronomical amount; if sold, the money will be divided amongst the participants as a grant for the arts.
Following perhaps one of the most significant financial crashes of the last century, the Argos catalogue, symbolising capitalism and mass consumerism, presented in the form of a found archaeological relic, raises the following questions: Is capitalism history? As an artwork, it provokes the question and value of the art market.
