As an exploration of the social and cultural structures that determine

what people choose to value, Archaeology of Contemporary Desire investigates contemporary desire through objects, images, and cultural remnants circulating within contemporary capitalist systems.

<Worth More Than It Seems> excavates another layer of that desire—the desire to create, possess, and gain recognition through forms of “value” collectively constructed by society.

In a world where almost everything can be bought, priced, evaluated, and ranked, objects derive meaning not only from their physical qualities but also from narratives, brands, histories, expertise, social status, and shared beliefs.

The works in this series examine the mechanisms through which value is produced: second-hand garments embedded with the histories of brands

and traces of consumption; cutting discs transformed into records that give voice to laborers; tools and objects of work elevated into the exhibition space; books that reflect systems of knowledge and cultural authority; and everyday objects whose status is altered through material, form, and context.

Considered together, these works reveal that value is not an inherent quality of things.

Rather, it is the outcome of social, economic, and cultural processes that continually determine what deserves admiration, collection, protection, or exchange.

The labor of some individuals often remains invisible, while brands accumulate immense worth. Certain forms of knowledge are recognized as cultural capital, while the lived experiences of many are reduced to the cost of sustaining the system.

Rather than asking how much these things are worth, this series invites viewers to question the structures behind valuation itself:

“What do we choose to value in the contemporary world,

And why do we continue to believe in that value?”