Exhibition
Shopping and other rituals
Jade Townsend
21 February – 15 May 2016
LED sculptures of English words and Chinese characters
LED sculptures of English words and Chinese characters
Jade Townsend’s installation Shopping and Other Rituals presents custom made, LED sculptures of English words and Chinese characters as objects of desire whilst also hinting at their eventual ruin and decay.
This mixed media, self-illuminated artwork explores the themes of consumerism, authenticity and translation that Townsend began investigating in her Typical Relics project, commissioned by leading Japanese fashion brand Comme des Garçons for their Beijing concept store in late 2014.
Created specifically for Pātaka to coincide with Wellington’s 2016 International Arts Festival, Shopping and Other Rituals is a vibrant expression of Townsend’s fascination with Chinese consumerism, especially the materiality and misrepresentation of luxury goods.
Townsend’s beaming, lantern-like text and mirrored surfaces draw the viewer into a world beyond the everyday – somewhere futuristic, glamorous and luxurious.
