Marianne Hanoun

FREE* is a compendium of writing and imagery on the ‘Freebie.' 

So often we are told about the hidden lives of objects – about how ordinary objects are in fact extraordinary. However, the increased media attention regarding the Freebie – relating in particular to its connotations with childhood obesity and manipulative marketing strategy – has led to an extraordinary object being rendered ordinary. FREE* strives for specificity within a canon of object-based writing and philosophy that either overstates the emotional meanings we attach to objects or simply labels them as ‘stuff,’ or ‘junk.’ 

Object-based and design-focussed, FREE* attempts to chart the Freebie’s shape-shifting history, encompassing aspects of object theory, materialism and the ways in which we interact with the Freebie that offers a more expansive and holistic consideration of its timeline. As an inherently commercial object that thrives on attention, it is not a case of shining a spotlight on an overlooked object, but presenting it in a different light, and examining the shadow it leaves behind.