Shilpa Gupta
From Provisions
About the Artist
"Gupta does not have a studio; her works can be made sitting at any desk. Her manner of working is unusual, but she does not perceive herself to be a new type of artist, and resists labellng her work political or theoretical, arguing that such terminology is 'overused, insincere'. Gupta prefers to consider her work political by default, in that it has its conduit through her experiences of the social." ..."[Gupta's] website Diamonds and You, 2000, which has a screaming pink background similar to those of commercial Indian websites, gives users a choice of the size, carat and shape of a diamond - the 'ultimate symbol of love' - to buy. You can also choose how the diamond is to be smuggled out of Sierra Leone, and which type of worker should cut the stone in the famous Indian diamond-cutting city of Surat. Should the worker be a child of six years of age? Should he earn less than half a doller per day? How much should his lungs be infected by the dust? The user, as a fancy, upper-middle-class Indian woman, can obtain this precious, soaked-in-blood treasure by the touch of a button, and the well-known jeweller's shop at the Zaveryi Bazaar will deliver it to your home."
--Johan Pijnappel, Art Asia Pacific, 2002
"Very crucial... are the 'default politics' that lie at the core of the choice to use such media. They are non-consumable, and they are mass-reproduced - embodying the desire to create alternative structures to those built on the commodification of art." ..."One of the reasons which for me gives validity to my practice is that it is for a larger audience, rather than just for the elite, and hence the decision to use visual codes and interfaces with which this audience is familiar, and which will allow it to feel at ease entering the work without being intimidated by it."
--Shilpa Gupta, from interview in ART IT, Winter/Spring 2007
Blessed Bandwidth, 2003
Your Kidney Supermarket, 2002-04
Diamonds and You, 2000
More on the Diamond Trade
Conflict Diamonds - Amnesty International
Some diamonds have helped fund devastating civil wars in Africa, destroying the lives of millions. Conflict diamonds are those sold in order to fund armed conflict and civil war. Profits from the trade in conflict diamonds, worth billions of dollars, were used by warlords and rebels to buy arms during the devastating wars in Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Sierra Leone. Wars that have cost an estimated 3.7 million lives.
Combatting Conflict Diamonds - Global Witness
Global Witness is working to prevent diamonds from fuelling conflict, human rights abuses and terrorism.
More on Organ Trafficking
NPR: Robert Siegel interviews Amy Friedman of the Yale University Medical Center. Friedman explains the rationale for the legalization and regulation of the sale of human kidneys. --All Things Considered, Feb. 16, 2006
New York Times article on Black Market Kidneys. Larry Richter, May 23, 2004
