Consumption, 2023

metal, PVA
28” x 96” x 12”

Consumption explores the space where theology and industry overlap through the incessant production of communion wafers manufactured for ritualistic consumption. In its most literal sense, the communion wafer is flour, water, yeast and salt. Symbolically, however, it is the body of Christ. They, like every other aspect of modern society, must be manufactured and sold, becoming a part of local economies as well as global traditions. You can buy a box of 1,000 communion wafers at Walmart for $16.37. The availability of this sacred symbol at a box store that has consistently closed small businesses while simultaneously lowering wages for local workers is only one example of religious commodification. Consumption takes this one step further by mimicking assembly line production to create non-edible replicas  removing the communion wafer’s functionality entirely. No longer consumable, the viewer is left to look at and question the form and value of thousands of plastic wafers.