A losing lottery ticket is a worthless piece of colored paper. But unlike routinely discarded paper in the trash, an old lottery ticket represents the death of a so-called dream—the easy-money dream, a perceived instantaneous solution to life’s woes—or at least a new car.
Two American artists collected thousands of losing lottery tickets to build a life-size model of a Lamborghini, and titled it "Ghost of a Dream." They also used thousands of Chinese death-offering money to cover a wall composed of the patterns that mimic Chinese architectural styles.
The exhibition is being displayed at the Galerie Paris-Beijing in the 798 Art District until Dec. 7.
The New York based artists, 33-year-old Lauren Was and 36-year-old Adam Eckstrom, estimated it required over a month to complete "Ghost of a Dream."
They imagined people’s lottery dreams and figured most people dream about buying a new car.
"We make all of our works from the remnants of people's dreams," Eckstrom said, "so we use the garbage to make the thing people actually dreamed about."
"Ghost of a Dream" radiates with color, and the technique of overlapping lottery tickets was inspired by 15th century Italian paintings.
The Galerie Paris-Beijing exhibition has provided the artists an opportunity to visit China. In their first impression, they noted the country’s rich, ancient culture, yet it was undeniable to them that China is experiencing a dramatic transformation and fast-paced development, and this contrast between the old and new has inspired them.
Was and Eckstrom met while attending graduate school at Rhode Island School of Design. Their work has been exhibited in New York, Rhode Island, Miami, Berlin, London and Basel, and also has been featured in numerous publications. In November 2009, they received the first annual Young Masters Art Prize in London.