Bad Apples / 2020

When fruit started rotting on the fields, the bad apples became essential workers.

After the Brexit referendum, reports abounded of Eastern Europeans experiencing discrimination and abuse in the U.K., often under the familiar media and political refrain of “You should go home.” And indeed, many Eastern Europeans have done so, with increased hostility after Brexit cited as one of the main push factors.

However, at the peak of the Covid pandemic, UK farms were at risk of losing their crop of fruit and vegetables due to labour shortages. Special flights were arranged to bring Eastern European agriculture workers back in, to often work in unsafe, overcrowded, low-paid and insecure jobs.

The 'Bad Apples' project takes on the duality of the pro-Brexit supporters who within months rebranded these previously despised immigrants as essential workers and "a critical part of making sure that we can put affordable food on people’s plates".

The project features a collaboration with ceramicist Alina Dimofte, which led to the creation of 21 handmade porcelain plates, limited to only one edition, made in London by Romanian hands.