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Return to search results Cathy Busby’s 24/7 at Work24/7 at Work installation view (2005) Cathy Busby is a Halifax-based artist, curator and writer who studies the interplay between emotions and consumer culture. In 24/7 at Work she displays management text books together with self-maintenance products such as deodorants, toothpastes, and energy drinks labeled High Endurance, 36 Hour Power! and Powerful Thirst Relief. The effect is similar to that of a retail display window. If these products are selling, writes Busby, then as consumers we must be eager to buy back a little time, strength and endurance with their promises of security, invincibility, and protection. 24/7 at Work is the result of Busby’s observations of language patterns in consumer and workplace environments. The books display titles such as Power Public Relations, High-Speed Management, and Competitive Advantage Through People. Positioning them alongside personal care items whose labels use similar language suggests that successful employees groom themselves to work around the clock. The exhibition invites viewers to consider the invasion of private life by business slogans and values. Exhibition Catalogue Exhibition Image Click on the image to enlarge it. |