my latest work aims to explore the process of adding value, with particular focus toward the impact of the maker. 

Where many products found for sale in todays marketplace have been produced en mass to keep cost and lead times to a minimum, this project seeks to establish the importance of operational imperatives contrary to that of a mass produced ideology - small scale production, limited product lines, locally sourced materials  and perhaps most importantly; the knowledge that a skilled individual has put time and effort into making a quality product. In contrast to the sterile, standardised items anyone can pick up at their local high street; smaller scale, independently made craft items offer a uniquely satisfying outcome and alternative to the plethora of mass produced commonalities served up by todays vast faceless corporations.

where is the value in todays consumer products? we know that the issue of quality (and hence value) is a relative one - an object will mean different things to different people according to the society they are in; the context in which that product is offered and in which it is used.

What is contributing most to value in products at the moment however? is it the inherent monetary cost associated with its components parts? invariably yes, but to what extent are we aware of this when we pay £1.34* per litre to fill up our car ... it should be clear from this example that the real value in fuel is the independence a vehicle offers (clearly its not as clean cut as this, with a whole host of factors contributing to how we arrive at a value arising from the inclusion of something as socially complex as a car.) But do we as consumers really think about the thousands of people who have worked to get this precious commodity from the ground to the pump ? or do we simply think "petrol sure is expensive..."

*price for 1 litre of unleaded petrol according to www.petrolprices.com/

more importantly, do we care how expensive things are if the name on the label provides us with that level of satisfaction that no other label can provide? Sought after brands will always be able to charge inflated price tags because of the prestige attached to owning such an item, but for the most part, the way in which these things are made is focused on the bottom line - driven by either corporate greed or market pressures - meaning that the level of quality cannot help but be diminished.