Artist Statement

What’s the Cost?

Clothing, Shoes, Jewelry, Watches, Movies, Games, Electronics, Home, Pet, Beauty & Heath, Toys, Kids, Sports, Automotive; these are only some of the product categories you can search on Amazon and it reflects the mass consumerism and demand for choice that we have today. The current culture rewards the new, the best and the most expensive. This drives the mass expansion of product choices and consumer consumption.  Leading to destruction on the environment.

COVID had highlighted this demand for stuff, businesses were hit hard by the sudden change while simultaneously consumers spending habits changed and product demand shifted; spending on Amazon between May and July was up 60% from the same time frame last year. While COVID changed what and how we buy, it has not changed how much we buy, and this continues to degrade our environment.

There is many stages to the product lifecycle, each coming with resource consumption and environmental degradation. As consumers we usually think about the current use of the product and maybe how to dispose of it; however, it’s critical to be conscious of the environmental impacts that occur at every stage of a product’s lifetime. From the extraction of natural resources and the energy needed to make the item, to its ultimate disposal or reuse.

Design and Marketing have the power to influence consumer trends, change societal thinking, and more. Going into my career I am challenged to find a balance between reaching a larger audience, growing sales, and communicating value to consumers while being conscious of the environment, and promoting sustainable consumption.

As I learned about the power that brands have over influencing consumer choice, I became unsettled by the lack of responsibility taken. Brands using feelings, desires and status to make you want that next best thing and often ignoring the environmental harm they bring. Some brands, however, are starting to embody sustainable practices and transparency throughout.  Consumption is a part of society and we could not operate without it, these products bring us joy and improve our lives; but what do we really need, how much, and who are we buying from? Our current consumption is beyond earths capacity to maintain it and we are only buying more; it is critical to look beyond what the product gives us, to what the product takes from the future.

This piece invites people to see the bigger picture of mass consumption. Each thing we buy has a life story, sometimes it seems like a short life till we’re done with the product or replace with something better but there is a larger footprint that will impact generations to come.