Claudia Borgna PLASTIC BAGS- Broomhill Sculpture Prize

Travelling to Berlin from Birmingham has been another epic journey of mine: 4,30 hours to Stansted Airport on the National Express coach service and a crazy stressful time checking in with Ryan Air with over weigh luggage (although we were prepared) and very light weight budget and they still are trying to scam and suck every penny out of you. I hate them!! We were packing and unpacking for 2 more hours at the airport, trying to cheat the system that can only get the real worse out of you. Please note that we had been packing for a week before that, shifting my plastic bags around, from one suitcase to the other, weighing them over and over, in order to follow the RULES of "cheap" flying.

Through out the whole airport, Veronica, my partner, out of stress was sweating, while I was swearing, while "they" (Ryan Air) kept weighing our humongous and deceiving hand luggage, I even had to run away from some Ryan Air security chick that was trying to stop me and again weigh and measure my trolley while bossing me around. I had to have them chase me, and me shouting angrily back at them, trying to get away with 5 extra kilos: 100 pounds worth in surcharges.....in the end we made it...I don't really know how! We were both completely exhausted from the experience, thanks God for beer......

I think the whole experience as comic and tragic as it was is probably impossible to fully describe!

Anyways, Veronica who is Mexican-American, is barely getting over the shock of our European low cost airlines and I am used to it by now!

Here are 2 pics of how I travelled with all my bags. In this instance I was travelling by train to the Rhyl Art Centre with 2000 plastic bags.

I don't have images of how I recently travelled to Stamford by train with 2,50 meters long and one meter wide monsterish black bin bags wrapped package. The preparation for travelling, not to mention the stress, take more time to construct than the actual art work! Walking around with them and trying to fit them in all sort of public means of transportation is in fact a very entertaining performance for the casual audience that always seems very intrigued and interested in the happening. Maybe I should consider to move on, and make that my actual work. I am sure at some point I will be integrating it all into my work some how!