Description
Containers as symbol of worldwide trade : as of recent estimates, container shipping accounts for about 60% to 70% of the total value of global trade. It is clear that a substantial portion of the products we use daily is transported by sea. Many everyday consumer goods, including electronics, clothing, furniture, and food products, are shipped internationally. A single container ship can emit as much CO2 as 50 million cars over a year due to its high capacity and long-distance travel.
For Vietnam, the capitalism started at the beginning of colonialism. In Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos) it was a system of colonial economic exploitation designed to serve the financial interests of France and the French colonial administration. It transformed a largely agrarian, village-oriented economy into one focused on resource extraction and cash-crop production for export.
The artwork is based on a vintage Indochina travel advertisement, which originally promoted journeys to Southeast Asia. The painting juxtaposes the colonial-era visual with modern elements: the map’s left side is crossed by graphical signs that can be interpreted as contemporary global financial and trade flows and its digital representations.
