In Sweatshop Opera, a young boy’s parents expect him to work in their sweatshop, making fake Louis Vuitton handbags. The boy, however, has other plans for his future. This piece was made as part of an installation and shown in the Hunter College MFA Thesis Show in 2009, titled Wenn Sie Etwas Sehen Was. The same installation was recreated for Dorsch Gallery in Miami, titled Knock-Off, in February, 2010.

The installation shots are of my thesis work at Hunter College’s MFA Thesis show in 2009. The elements in this installation are built in forced perpective, using the same methods and materials that were used to build the minuature sets in the video. The hallway leading into the space was armed by homemade laser trip wires, causing a succession of fans to blow soothingly on the viewer as he or she walks down the hallway. Beckon Louis is playing on a vertical flatscreen, luring the viewer into the space.