Ob-La-Di, Bags in Trees

Some serious investigative work by our research department today yielded an intriguing discovery—Bags In Trees' sister site from across the pond. Straight from the UK, Turquoise Bag in a Tree is an ongoing project by artist Hilary Jack, which focuses on the environmental impact of plastic carrier bags. Here's a bit of her artistic statement:

"Turquoise carrier bags are essentially an urban phenomenon, closely linked to the city and its consumer culture. Used once they are frequently deemed functionless and discarded as waste, becoming ubiquitous remnants of urban man’s modern way of life. Some bags escape their fate as rubbish only to get caught trees. Urban trees and shrubbery planted at the whim of an architect or urban planner become a magnet for urban detritus, turquoise bags being the most visible. As a reminder of our consumer culture the bags hang there melancholically, taking years to decay, and acting as an absurd memorial to our excesses."

Video of a turquoise bag in a tree by Hilary Jack

That video is so sexy. According to her biography, Ms. Jack enjoys "highlighting the absurdity of the human condition and the poetry that can be found in the everyday." If one thing is certain, it's that she's a serious artist. I hope she doesn't mind our cheekiness!

posted by Brian Sacawa @ 11:37 AM