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$2/hour
2021–ongoing
Installation
Hand crocheted with found and donated plastic bags
2" x 5" each, overall dimensions vary

“$2/hour” is an ongoing, growing collection of objects crocheted out of used plastic bags, made to resemble a US dollar symbol. Using the traditional home-making techniques of crochet, 2 objects are made in one hour—which informs the title “$2/hour.” In contrast to “power” supplied by electricity in my other works, this project approaches “power” in reference to systems of influence and structures in society. While the pandemic urged many of us to reach for tactile, tangible materials and connections, it also prompted us to reconcile the social and environmental impact of our actions as well as question systems of power that we became more vulnerable to during a global disruption. This installation is two-fold in its interpretation of an economic symbol—in transforming “trash to treasure” the objects evoke a since of resistance and communal empowerment against corporate greed, while simultaneously questioning the value of money, the impact of over-consumption, and the individual’s role within the economic systems of society.