An artistic research project held between 2016 and 2017 questioned the effects of consumption on buyers. This year, a second edition is delving deeper into the subject and is particularly looking at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our production, shopping and consumption habits.
You Are What You Buy (YAWYB) reacts to current issues on consumption and consumerism, offering an alternative artistic experience. The first edition was a year-long transdisciplinary project that departed from a reflection on our need to affirm ourselves as consumers. The research process and final presentation were set in a supermarket in Malta, offering a different possibility of where and how to experience art − away from the art institution.
After a successful edition in 2016-2017, the project You are What You Buy (YAWYB) is now looking at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our production, shopping and consumption habits.
The second edition, titled YAWYB – A Remote ReVisit, kicked off with a public opt-in survey last July. It was followed by a series of online conversations and group workshops with community co-creators based in Europe. These were both consumers as well as service providers.
A number of themes which emerged are being presented in a digital and interactive publication. The research has also inspired a set of creative interpretations including hand-drawn illustrations, poems and a short story, together with a series of video clips produced by the community co-creators. These will be launched as part of a two-day online event that also invites participants to reflect and create together through a number of activities. These sessions aim to be interactive and as playful as possible as one experimen