Commerce Court, Toronto

This project called Trade was produced by Kathryn Walter for the 2010 iteration of the Radiant Dark series of exhibitions curated by Shaun Moore and Julie Nicholson which took place in the lobby of Commerce Court at the centre of the financial district in downtown Toronto. Walter interpreted the theme "Assets and Values" through the idea of trade.

A pile of FELT disks lies on the floor. This mound is rich and contradictory in form as it is heaped like waste and branded like product. The disks are offcuts— gasket centers — worthless, yet full of possibility. A sign beside the pile invites viewers to trade:

FELT Disks
100% wool
The function is yours to determine.

Take one and in return
leave something as a token of exchange
The value is yours to determine.

As the pile of felt diminished over time a pile of odds and ends increased beside it. These tokens of exchange, from cigarettes to business cards to condoms and keys, raised questions about what is waste and what has value?

This project follows Walter’s interest in exploring the limits of felt’s material properties and adds another piece to a series of FELT piles that makes use of remnants from FELT studio projects.