Interventions have become increasingly important in the development of my work as I feel they allow me to really communicate with the city itself, create a narrative between my work and the environment and also directly communicate with the general public. I decided to take that further with some infiltration art in the Arndale Shopping centre (Mall).
I chose the Arndale shopping centre as the location for this intervention because for me the "Shopping Mall" is the place that more than ever represents the homogenisation of the city. Once within the white wash walls we could be anywhere, the people, the shops and the clothes are all the same. This place is made to make people feel safe and comfortable, to remove the need for thought or decision, it encourages us to spend money we don't have to buy a personality which has been chosen for us.
I chose both "Next" and "River Island" as they are again typical shops in which they pick the latest trends, reduce them down to their lowest common denominator and create hoards of clones. People who purchase clothes and t-shirts from here, ones which often contain slogans or logos are not used to be challenge in this environment or even reading and contemplating what they end up wearing and representing.
I wanted to break the spell of the mall and snap people into a sense of unease, to challenge them to think and to react, to notice things and to wake up. To turn these zombies back into humans again and encourage the individual to read what they like into this shirt.
I noticed the idea of a t-shirt being free in this environment made a lot of people unconformable too. That although this said "Just Take Me" on it many people were too afraid to do so. Afraid to go against the conventions and normalities of this place they have become conditioned to follow. Most would not, but for those who decided to, my aim for this piece is that is makes them comprehend the wider implications of how the city controls their behaviours and thoughts.
I feel this is where my work and idea are starting to really develop and communicate the ideas I intended. I think that interventions are the place in which it really comes to life. I would like to develop this further into bigger ideas and outcomes. To turn these pieces almost into protests.
