Haydn Shaughnessy is a journalist, writer, producer and owns the Haydn Shaughnessy Art Gallery in Kinsale. This is a guest post from Haydn about his latest project:
Because brands have pushed us to desire what we cannot afford, because banks as brands have lent us the money, because there are tough times ahead ….
The new social media project One World Wallet is part statement against the brand, part social media art work, part social network, part product, part virtual art production house. Wholly novel. It is a project of art label start-up This is Not A Brand and it’s a way of trying to make sense of social media from a creative cultural perspective.
“Bring a little culture into your wallet and be known for how you spend rather than what you buy.”
Ideal for downturns in the global economy and as an antidote to what we’ve experienced over the past decade.
On Oneworldwallet, you buy an art-inspired wallet for all your spending needs and in return get a selection of free art downloads made from a virtual wall of wallets constructed in Second Life. As more people buy so the project issues more art products based on the wall and on members own contributions – photo uploads, blog posts, videos, whatever…. You too are a part of the art.
As an art work it will grow out of member contributions, examples of which are previewed on site (scroll to the wallet wall pictures at the bottom of the home page).
Once a member has bought a wallet the network will offer regular free art downloads (no shipping out of paper after the first wallet is posted), some created from network members’ uploads, some from the virtual space in Ten Cubed (the wallet wall), that we have created in Second Life as part of the one world wallet project.
It’s an exploration of how social media will affect art and art economics as well as a social media art work in its own right and a collaboration with and between an artist and social network participants. It’s so multifaceted it comes with five pockets.
And it’s an occasion to say I’d rather buy from inspired people that I know or meet rather than from a corporation. Time to say not to brands and hello to a little more culture.
Wallets cost Euro 40 (approx US $63) with up to five free art downloads on day 1, for the greedy. Euro 1 per sale goes to Amnesty and their Universal Declaration of Human Rights initiative.