Added Value - Dysfunctional Upgrade

Door Christophe Muylaert, 2026

40cm x 60cm

A second-hand belt is presented on a white platform. Attached to its fastening pin is a transparent epoxy sphere filled with decorative elements that visually echo the sparkling stones embedded in the buckle. The addition appears to be an aesthetic improvement, yet it renders the belt unusable: the pin can no longer pass through the belt holes. On a lower platform, three additional epoxy spheres are displayed. Containing the same material as the sphere attached to the belt, they increase progressively in size. What begins as a plausible (yet dysfunctional) decorative upgrade gradually develops into an absurd amplification of the same principle. The work explores the tension between use value and sign value. Within consumer culture, objects are constantly enriched with new features, accessories, and symbolic forms of added value. Here, that logic reaches its opposite: the addition of value becomes the very cause of functional loss. The epoxy spheres act as material manifestations of a process in which ornament, status, and aesthetic appeal become more important than an object's original purpose. As the accessory grows, attention shifts from the belt to the addition itself. Ultimately, the upgrade becomes more significant than the thing it was intended to improve. Added Value - Dysfunctional Upgrade reflects on consumption, desire, and the tendency to confuse symbolic value with actual value.

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