An Artist Is Launching a Pop-Up Grocery Store in Times Square Filled Entirely With Products Made From Upcycled Plastic

This March, thousands of tourists milling through the neon-lit
chaos that is Times Square will encounter something a little
off in between the frenetic advertisements and
fast-fashion stores.

At first glance, what they find might look like a full-size,
fully-stocked grocery store. In and of itself, this isn’t unusual
for a city of around 8.6 million people, but this store is
different; every single product—from the potato chips to the
knock-off cans of Four Loko energy drink—is made from upcycled,
single-use plastic.

What’s going on here? It’s The Plastic Bag Store, an
art project by Brooklyn-based Robin Frohardt. Consider it an
immersive installation with many (polymer) layers.

The concept has earned Frohardt both a Guggenheim
Fellowship and a Creative Capital Award. The store originated at
the University of North Carolina, and is making its New York City
debut with Times Square Arts on March 18. At night, the
site-specific work will transform into the set for a three-act
puppet show directed by Frohardt with original music by Freddi
Prince.

It’s no coincidence that the project opens just as New York’s
plastic-bag ban goes into effect on March 1, says the artist, who
spoke to Artnet News ahead of the opening. The idea struck her
years ago, she says, when she was walking through the aisles of a
grocery store and realized the sort of mise en abyme
situation at hand: “Everything was already wrapped in plastic,
shrink-wrapped, and then placed into a double plastic bag at
checkout. I was struck by the absurdity of that,” she says. And so,
with The Plastic Bag Store, “I turned [the absurdity] up
to eleven.”

We live in an increasingly plastic world, so it’s easy to forget
how detrimental this stuff can be. It takes more than 500 years for
the average plastic bag to degrade in a landfill. Plastic wrecks
havoc on sea turtles and marine life; in some instances, as in the
Great Pacific garbage patch, it helps spawn monstrous floating
masses that are significantly larger than Texas.

Forhardt is no stranger to the admittedly quirky world of
puppetry; her 2013 play The Pigeoning was a critical
darling that, true to the artist’s style, addressed themes of
public safety and personal identity. Herlatest puppet show, set to
take place in The Plastic Bag Store, imagines what it
would be like for some future creatures to excavate the pounds of
plastic left by contemporary humans. How might they misinterpret
the significance of such an abundance? Most plastic bags are used
for approximately 12 minutes, but based on their prevalence, some
future observer might think they were precious objects. “We all
romanticize the past,” Frohardt says. “It’s a way to be a part of
the lineage of history.”

“I’m not trying to make people feel bad” with the play, she
adds. “It’s not about shaming people, but if the project makes you
take a second look around, and notice the degree to which we’re
using this material, that’s huge.”

To create the products in the store, Frohardt became “something
of a plastic bag connoisseur,” she says. The bags she used were
collected from friends and neighbors, all of whom were happy to get
rid of the environmentally unfriendly weight.

In a statement, the artist said “there is no ‘away’ when we
throw something out,” and that’s at the heart of the tragicomic
play that unfolds at night. Like magic, the “store shelves” become
stage platforms for the characters. Hidden doors are opened, and
other visual trickery unfolds as the store transforms into an
immersive theater set, with the products playing starring roles in
the show.

Puppetry might not seem like an intuitive way to educate people
about plastic waste and its effect on the environment, but for
Frohardt, it makes perfect sense. “There’s something universal
about puppetry,” she says. “It’s entertaining for everybody, and
it’s a very forgiving medium that really helps you connect with the
story.”

The Plastic Bag Store will be on view March 18 through April
12 at 20 Times Square, open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to
6 p.m, with nightly performances at 7 p.m. & 9
p.m. Admission is free, but registration for the show
is required due to limited seating.

The post An Artist Is Launching a Pop-Up Grocery Store in
Times Square Filled Entirely With Products Made From Upcycled
Plastic appeared first on artnet News.