Paradox of Plenty #43 (C’est a ce prix que nous mangeons du sucre)

Paradoxes of Plenty #43 is dedicated to the cultivation of sugarcane and sugar beet. Through the use of watercolour, the work interweaves scenes from different eras: portraits of female farmworkers on the plantations alternate with images of labour in sugar beet processing factories, revealing a historical continuity in the harsh conditions associated with this production. Yesterday, as today, in fact, the sugar supply chain is marked by exploitative practices.
Between one scene and another, various types of pests—such as the sugarcane beetle and the beet weevil—creep in, seeming to traverse the entire composition. The image is also interspersed with references to sugar advertising: young women, depicted as symbols of energy, vitality, and well-being, introduce a stark contrast between the imagery constructed by commercial promotion and the reality of the agricultural labour that underpins its production.