Tower of Babel Shop No.2016

From the monumental project by the artist at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London in 2015. Standing six metres high, The Tower of Babel was made up of 3000 miniature bone china buildings, each depicting a real London shop.

The Tower of Babel was a richly-layered work that told an array of stories about our capital city, our society and economy, and ourselves as consumers. Derelict shops appeared at the bottom of the tower, while London’s exclusive boutiques and galleries featured at the summit. Each shop was a unique, signed artwork and each was offered for sale.

Prices of the shops rose in relation to their position on the tower, prompting people to confront where they fitted into London’s hierarchy of consumption, through financial necessity or materialistic desire.

Photographs by the artist were used to produce the ceramic transfers that have been fired onto the shops, making each shop a unique work of art in its own right.