Ten Ceramic Shopping Lists found while working in a supermarket during the pandemic.
2021
Created for the touring exhibition 52 Actions, with the generous support of Artspace in Sydney.
As our world changed during the pandemic, I noticed that our shopping lists started reflecting these changes too. For this project, I’ve recreated a new series of ten ceramic sculptures based on shopping lists I found while working during Melbourne’s 2020 lockdown.
The sculptures are presented here alongside photos of the actual shopping lists they were based on.
Most lists are written quickly, unlike ceramic which is a very slow medium, and it’s through the act of slowly recreating these lists that I’ve allowed myself the time and space to reflect on them. The resulting accompanying texts are presented alongside each artwork.
I'd like to acknowledge and pay respect to the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation, the traditional owners of the land I live and work on, and pay respect to their Elders past and present, who’ve been creating art here for tens of thousands of years.
This series has been acquired by the City of Melbourne Art and Herritage Collection and has now found a permanent home in Melbourne Town Hall.
During the lockdown, many people passed the time by picking up new hobbies like giving themselves haircuts, adopting pets, and giving their pets haircuts.
Here’s a ceramic sculpture written by someone who used their time to plan out a week’s worth of breakfasts, lunches, afternoon teas and dinners.
Here’s a ceramic sculpture of a shopping list I found last year that says ‘Chocolates for neighbour’.
One of the more positive things we’ve seen during the pandemic is the many ways people are looking out for each other, and becoming more caring to those around us.
I was secretly hoping this list had belonged to one of my neighbours but sadly they haven’t given me any chocolates yet, hopefully next lockdown.
Here’s a ceramic sculpture of a shopping list I found last year written on both sides of an envelope.
This list was written during the peak of panic buying, when people couldn’t rely on what they wanted being in stock and so often had to improvise, as seen with items on this list such as, ‘Get pkt Rice if you can’ and ‘6 pkts Butter Chicken D.F. or Something else.’
One of the only places you’re allowed to go during lockdown is the supermarket, and so it becomes quite the hangout destination. I noticed that many of the shopping lists I found at this time became increasingly shorter as people, looking for an excuse to leave the house, would spread out their weekly shop over several days.
With schools closed last year, there was an increase in shopping lists written by children. Here’s a ceramic sculpture of a shopping list I found written on the back of some maths homeschooling.
What I love most about this list is that while lots of people wanted a cat and a dog during lockdown, this person wanted a ‘chese biscat’ and a ‘pup pastri’.
Working as a supermarket cleaner during Melbourne’s lockdown, I was officially called an ‘essential worker’. My shifts started at 5am so I was given a permit that allowed me to travel outside of curfew, and I was able to go outside my 5km limit to get to work. It felt good to be a frontline worker - just doctors, nurses, and me mopping up a spill in aisle 9.
But I wasn’t the only one doing lots of cleaning last year of course. Here’s a ceramic sculpture of a list by someone who also had some cleaning ahead of them.
I felt lucky to be able to leave my house to go to work. Here’s a ceramic sculpture of a shopping list I found last year written by someone who instead had to turn their home into an office.
Here’s a ceramic sculpture of the first time I ever saw ‘hand sanitizer’ on a shopping list.
On the back of it is the first time I ever saw a drawing of a giraffe on a shopping list.
To ensure that the elderly were able to buy the things they needed and not be crushed in the panic buying stampedes, during lockdown the supermarket began opening an hour early for people with a pensioner card.
Here’s a ceramic sculpture of a list I found during the early hour. It was the first time I’d seen a list that had ‘newspapers'.
I really thought about how if you don’t use the internet as much, the newspaper would be a somewhat reliable place to get your daily case numbers and restriction updates. Either that or they just wanted the paper so they can do the quiz.
