Behind the image: “The Artificial Silk Girl”

Project Summary

The images in ‘31 explore social and political parallels between the present and the late 1920s and 1930s.

The project’s limited-edition archival pigment prints measure 28 x 42 cm (11 x 16.5 inches).

Caption to “The Artificial Silk Girl”

The Artificial Silk Girl is a modern take on the 1932 Depression-era novel by German author Irmgard Keun.

It tells the tale of an attractive young secretary of modest means who exploits her looks and charm in a failed bid to achieve fame, fortune, and a longed-for lifestyle filled with expensive, fashionable goods. Like F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Gatsby, she never wiles her way into a higher social class. The faulty notion that material wealth leads to happiness and respect persists today.

The consumerist, youth-obsessed lifestyle promoted by the advertising industry since the 1920s has been escalated by social media platforms and their “influencers.” These forces define many people’s everyday lives, luring them into debt and disappointment. As a result, many try to maintain a fashionable lifestyle even when they are unable to pay their bills for such basics as housing, heating, and food. Will we ever learn that conspicuous consumption is ineffectual and unsustainable?

Escapism

To represent escapism in this photograph I used props such as boxes of chocolate, new clothing, cigarettes, and bottles and glasses containing alcoholic beverages. These items are strewn across newspapers and unpaid bills. These elements isolate the main character not only by creating a shield between the woman in the image and her realistic world, but also by establishing a barrier between her and the audience.

Living Conditions and Sustainability

In many European countries the main fuels for heating are oil and gas. As energy prices rise and many households have no alternative solutions to fossil fuels, old electric heaters and stoves may seem to provide a short term solution for the winter.

However, such options come with their own downsides. In some regions of France, for example, the electric grid isn’t robust enough to satisfy the demand for electricity-powered heating devices, and electrical black-outs aren not uncommon.

To bring such situation closer to the viewers, I used a small electrical heater and dimmed lights during the shoot.