Stock, 2011
Original Stock Certificate, Wooden Lightbox, Mirrored Glass, Fluorescent Light, Acrylic Paint
This work is a collection of original stock certificates from defunct dot com companies mostly from the late 90's "Nasdaq 5000" era. Displayed behind mirrored light boxes, the work is an attempt in materializing the internet; attracted to the idea that these formally traditional documents represent physical ephemera left behind, transposing a website into a commodity. Most of these companies were built on speculation and investment capital, without product or consumer baring outside the market of venture capitalists and investors. During the late 90's there was an enormous amount of excitement about new technology and how it will change the world. I see the internet economy of the late 90's and the art economy of today to be similar as they both are hinged on the market's evaluation of an idea, not an object, product or service. The power of an idea, and the people/person behind it, is what's valuable. The comparison and play between the internet and art is at the heart of this work.