This is not a Värdera

This is not a VARDERA is a lighthearted piece of work — at least on the surface — which plays with and challenges our ideas of mass-production, sustainability, consumerism, and the very nature of matter itself. At first glance, we see what appears to be an ordinary collection of mugs. Their shape is immediately familiar to us, so we assume we understand their function. However, on closer inspection, we begin to understand that these are no ordinary drinking vessels. Aside from the fact that they are not made from porcelain like your classic IKEA mug, they also appear to have hair. Human hair. The mugs were created using a durable mold, which allowed for easy and free-flowing replication. Indeed, production was limited only by the amount of wax available. Krisztina felt it was important when dealing with issues of sustainability to use recycled wax. However, as it is against the law to repurpose used wax from beauty salons (for fear of human rights abuses based on DNA misappropriation), she had to rely on herself, and four other wax donors. Once collected together, the wax was melted, cleaned of hair, and poured into the mold. Strands of hair were then introduced, binding the material together, creating extra durability in the process. In tackling the idea of sustainability and such fundamental capitalist constructs as supply and demand, This is not a VARDERA takes everything we think we know about something as seemingly mundane as drinking our morning coffee and asks us to think again. It questions our relationship with everyday items and with the raw materials from which they are created. Replacing porcelain with less readily available materials helps to create an entirely new perspective. And from within that perspective, certain questions arise... Would it be acceptable, from a moral standpoint, to breed human beings like battery chickens in order to harvest their hair? Or is the whole concept of mass production actually just a cosmic delusion that, through a combination of ignorance and convenience, we willingly swallow? So. Tea or coffee?