As part of an ambitious collaboration, Noah Latif Lamp and Rein Kooyman present Last Christmas, a photographic work that would weigh heavily on the conscience of any honorable western society, whose implication in the destruction of the natural world wields the real cost of overconsumption.
The large format photograph documents an art installation whose imagery lays naked the tyranny of abundance that is always with us but reaches a fever pitch during Christmas. The festivities bring about a natural state of reflection – a sacred window reserved for comfort and love – but with that, the pressure to tie loose ends, the worry of having enough money and time to buy gifts, create a sense of occasion for friends and family that lives up to expectations, overflowing with food, drink and presents that we could never come close to consuming, let alone wholesomely appreciate. The material and commercial greed that governs the ritual has come to devour our thoughts, emotions, time and space, even our essential purpose. We accept the wholesale chimera of Christmas, but what is it really about? Beneath the plastic wrapping, will we find unconditional compassion for all people? A generous and charitable spirit? Or have those values been eroded?