Branded and On Display

Ours is a culture defined by marketing and acquiring. With one of our founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson, a compulsive shopper, this just may be part of the definition of being American. Virtually every activity in our lives is experienced through purchases, from layettes to caskets. Branded and On Display is the first exhibition to examine the work of artists who explore this dominant cultural phenomenon. The pioneering exhibition at Tate Liverpool and Shirn Kunstalle Frankfurt, Shopping: A Century of Art and Consumer and Culture provided an encyclopedic and historical survey of the subject considered in its broadest terms. Branded and On Display offers a focused investigation of artwork that critically examines the practices and manipulations of consumer exchanges. In a range of media (sculpture, video, installation, sound, painting, photography) the work, including some key historical Pop pieces, is compelling, provocative, funny, nudging us to re-view our culture with an appraising eye.