Many of us are drawn to the material things in life because at least for a fleeting moment in time, they make us happy. We may understand and even agree with the notion that mindless, rampant consumerism is partially responsible for the challenges that our environment currently faces, but it's oddly effortless to rationalize that purchasing one small _________ won't really make a difference. I know a few people who are confessed shopaholics and have described in great Technicolor detail the rush that they experience when they lay their eyes on something new and different. It almost sounds as though a biological change rushes over them - quite like what one might experience after slurping down their first cup of high-octane in the morning. Um, yes...I've been there, too. The problem is that no matter what, we always crave another hit. We can make New Year's declarations about relinquishing our consumerist ways, but a seductive tractor beam inevitably leads us back to the palace of stuff where we gamely scoop up bigger, better, badder versions of the trinkets that make our hearts momentarily flutter. Landfills be damned - we deserve to enjoy our lives!
Things come into perspective when you pore over British artist Simon Evans' colossal visual catalog of his worldly possessions, entitled "Everything I Have". People on the outside constantly try to analyze the artistic intentions and message behind works like this, presuming that there is always a secret metaphor to decipher or some wry irony to dissect. When I look at his collaged presentation consisting of hand-lettered descriptions swirling beneath cut-out magazine pictures of the supposed articles cluttering his household, I find it to be emblematic of what is clogging the homes and apartments of average consumers around the world. Anchored to his canvas with scotch tape, each food item, garment and household essential is numbered and accented with whimsical commentary that doesn't really shed light on anything in particular because one can't help but be blown away by just how effortless it is to accumulate so much stuff. The "stuff" and its linear organization by group type is the star of the show. We've all got it...some far more than others.
It seems as though Evans is highlighting the sheer irony of our society, always feeling empty and yet being so stuffed to the gills with things that inevitably end up collecting several inches of dust that we finally chuck them out of desperation. We need order in our lives! We need to purge! In a fit of tidy-itis, many of us succumb to the temptation to "clean out our closets" but we rarely get around to giving our undesired trinkets new homes. How about those unopened rolls of wrapping paper still sheathed in plastic that we tuck into the community recycling container? I just witnessed that sight this weekend...brand new and perfectly usable. There will be future Christmases, so why did the mystery recycler chuck their gift wrap? Couldn't a neighbor, friend or family member have benefitted? What about someone on Craigslist? Do they think that they'll never conceal another gift in their lifetime with festive prints? Maybe Evans' piece of art will inspire all of us to take stock of the amazing fortune that we really do have and spread some of our underappreciated wealth to our fellow man...at least I'd like to think so.
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