Cash, Clash & Climate - MASLEN & MEHRA

All the sculptures in this series are hand-made by Maslen & Mehra using wire, paper-mâché and decoupage. Cash: For this collection the works explore bailouts, credit culture, money made from war, tampon tax, housing bubbles, natural capital, the commodification of food staples and the almost religious status that money has reached in our times. Clash: Social unrest from Istanbul to Athens, the use of social media to organize protests, the charged debate concerning gun control and gun rights in the US and even the London riots of 2011 feature. Climate: This theme loosely covers environmental topics such as chronic pollution as a heavy cost for economic power in China, melting ice caps, the opposing views of climate change, the legacy of radiation from Japans nuclear disaster and the untimely death of a sperm whale in Spain from ingesting 17kg of plastics generated for British and European supermarkets.

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Food Chain

Bubble Trouble

Faith In Fiat

Legacy

Gezi Is Ours

Profits and Poisons

Food Futures

Body Mass Index

Ultimate Control

‘For me, the most spectacular moments of thought were created by a collection of plates. A nostalgic medium usually created in ceramics, but in this case recreated in paper-mache in the hands of Maslen and Mehra, they are transformed into a sinister community-reflective tool addressing the political, cultural and moral decisions we make and how they may be addressed as historical artefacts or moments in time. Almost mocking the way in which we now live compared to our past, they highlight our obsession with money, power and possessions.’ Ruth Page The Upcoming London

Food Chain Based on a plate in the Mares Museum, Barcelona. This year a sperm whale was found dead in Spain with 17kg of plastic inside it...mostly from the giant Spanish greenhouses that supply
Major UK supermarkets.

Profits and Poisons is based on a 17th century Kraak porcelain plate in the collection of the Asian Museum of Civilisation in Singapore. The plate was adapted to include city professionals donning masks to protect against pollution. They are encircled by a series of eight miniature images of the most polluted cities in China. Economic success can come at a very high cost. Will unprecedented levels of pollution that directly effect millions of people compel China to lead the way with environmental solutions?
Devotion likens our obsession with money to religion. The golden colour which encircles the rim is provided by imagery of gold bullion patterned with drawings of currency symbols. In the distance a heap of refuse:  the fallout of current rates of consumption.

Winds Of Change shows a peaceful scene invaded by an angry Greek protester surrounded by the European Union stars and includes graffiti from the streets of Athens: ‘IMF get out’. It depicts the tumultuous relationship between Greece and the European Union, as Greeces' EU status still hangs in the balance.

Food Futures is based on a plate held in the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum London. The statement Waste Not Want Not and the wheat design exist on the original plate. Imagery of grains such as corn, barley and rice and at the centre a reference to a roulette wheel are introduced. This piece highlights ethical issues concerning the commodification of food staples and the potential for market profiteering. Is it right to gamble and profit when losers will be denied access to basic food due to soaring costs? This couldn’t be a more timely subject as droughts in the US and wet weather in Europe in 2012 are set to cause wheat prices to soar. Who will be the winners and losers?