The Social Bank: a critique of value, 2017

Exhibited at UWAG in Waterloo, ON; Malaspina Printmakers in Vancouver, BC

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The Social Bank: a critique of value is a relational art project originally exhibited at the University of Waterloo Art Gallery in 2017. The bank distributes a new kind of a social currency that emphasizes intrinsic human values. When the bank is open, the public is encouraged to become a client by interacting with our Teller. A withdrawal is granted once the client decides which value he or she deems most important from the available list.

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The bank currently offers 7 types of bills. Each bill is digitally rendered and printed on rag bond paper and receives a unique serial number upon withdrawal. The bank itself is constructed using industrial cardboard that we digitally rendered and "printed" on a CNC cutter and a digital print on heavy cotton. The bank is branded in trust by the Value Investment Alliance. Our Teller is played by actress Jessica Bertrand.

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The early research stages of this project was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). In 2017 (fall) a portion of the project was exhibited at Malaspina Printmakers in Vancouver, BC. In 2019 this project received funding from the Ontario Arts Council's Multi and Inter-Arts Projects grant. The bank will be appearing throughout Kitchener-Waterloo and the surrounding regions this spring and summer.