When Charlie Brown lamented in the 1965 Peanuts classic that Christmas had gone commercial, he was way ahead of his years. If you are planning to blitz out the Boxing Day sales this week, pause and consider this project by the art collective, Luzinterruptus.
According to an article in the Huffington Post, the colourful "Consumerist Christmas Tree"—erected in the Prince Bishops Shopping Centre plaza as part of the Lumiere festival in Durham, England—was constructed of around 3,000 shopping bags.
"We wanted to give a double edge to our complaint," said Luzinterruptus, whose display coincided with a garbage strike in the group's hometown of Madrid. "On the one hand, the massive use of plastic bags and the consequences this has on the environment, and on the other hand, the excessive and unnecessary consumption that occurs during the Christmas holidays."
Best of all, to make the tree and street lanterns Luzinterruptus cleverly sought plastic bag donations from residents, associations and local colleges. The bags were stuffed with yet more needless plastic packaging, through which lights shine through. The result is actually kind of stunning, until you look closely.
So if you really must venture out to the sales this week, do me a favour: BYOB (bring your own bag) and stop and consider whether you really NEED another thing.
What do you think of the tree?
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