Wineworld

The work Wineworld emerges from an encounter with the everyday—a simple wine display in the local shop, WineWorld—reimagined and abstracted through the lens of form and critique. At first glance, the piece presents a structured stack of wine bottles, rendered in smooth, flowing lines that invite a sense of order and precision. Yet, the deeper one looks, the more the details unravel into layers of meaning and tension.

The blackness of the wine bin beneath the bottles evokes a cavernous void—both literal and symbolic—a reminder of what lies beneath society’s veneer of refinement. The bottles, stripped of labels and reduced to minimalist forms, suggest anonymity and uniformity, yet their air pockets and soft curves allude to potential energy and fragility. The arrangement is deliberate, its pyramid shape evoking a sense of balance, even as the imperfections—the off-kilter lids and the missing detail at the centre—challenge this harmony.

This depiction of wine, often celebrated as a symbol of culture and sophistication, invites reflection on its more insidious role in society. The prevalence of alcohol, its advertising, and its normalisation form part of a broader narrative about excess, dependency, and complicity. The black void can be read as a descent into these indulgences—a reckoning with the folly and waste that underpin a substance so often regarded with casual reverence.

As the bottles descend into the bin, they take on a haunting new form. Their lids, rounded and off-centre, become heads, transforming the bottles into prostrate figures lying shoulder to shoulder. The imagery evokes bodies being lowered into graves, a stark reminder of the human cost of what is often seen as harmless indulgence.

This work is not a celebration of Wineworld but an indictment of the systems it represents—a critique of civilisation’s reliance on substances that promise escapism or connection yet perpetuate harm and waste. By abstracting and simplifying the forms, the piece invites viewers to look beyond the surface and confront the unsettling truths hidden within. It seeks to challenge our assumptions and provoke a quiet moment of reflection on the structures, habits, and values we take for granted.