Art / Adblock Bristol
‘We’re all addicted to our phones and have become a commodity’
A new artwork with an anti-mobile phone message has appeared on a community billboard in St Werburgh’s.
The message ‘reclaim your attention’ displayed above a group of people glued to smartphones can now be read by passers-by on Mina Road.
The piece of art was designed by Bristol-based street artist James Mernagh, better known as Merny, in collaboration with Adblock Bristol.
It has been displayed on ever-changing art space the Burg Arts Billboard which has for years showcased local artworks as a positive alternative to corporate advertising.
Merny told Bristol24/7 he wanted to push back against big tech and artificial intelligence and “reclaim mental space from digital slop”.
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“We’re all addicted to our phones and we have become a commodity,” continued Merny.
“Our attention is being harvested by big tech and now with the rise of AI our ideas and behaviours are being observed to train computers to copy us so well that we can’t even tell.
“If a digital service is free to you, then you are the product. Maybe it’s time we push back and reclaim the space that is our attention.
“Adblock work to reclaim public space from advertising, and I hope in a tiny way my artwork will work to reclaim mental space from digital slop.
“Even if it just makes one person put their phone down for a few minutes, it was probably worth it.”
Relaunched in 2018 by Adblock Bristol, the Burg Arts Billboard uses a disused billboard to promote a sense of community, creativity and local issues, contrasting with commercial messages on other billboards in the city.
Main photo: Betty Woolerton
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