destroyed apple products
apple destroyed products by michael tompert and paul fairchild all photos by michael tompert and paul fairchild
a series of smashed, mangled, shot up and melted apple products are the subject of a recent photography project by a san francisco-area graphic designer who said he’s trying to make people think about their relationship with these universally beloved gadgets.
michael tompert said he had spent the last several months purchasing the newest in apple consumer technology and then creatively destroying the pricey toys. the results, which he photographed, briefly went on display at a gallery exhibition that ran over the weekend at the small live worms gallery in san francisco.
tompert said the idea for the project came to him after he gave each of his two sons an ipod touch for christmas. he said the two boys fought over one of the devices, which had a certain game on it. fed up with the quarrel, tompert said he grabbed one of the ipods and smashed it on the ground.
‘they were kind of stunned – the screen was broken and this liquid poured out of it. I got my camera to shoot it,’ tompert said. ‘my wife told me that i should do something with it.’
in all, tompert created 12 images of destroyed apple products, working with his friend paul fairchild, a photographer. ‘they had to be a brand-new product,’ tompert said. ‘it’s not about destroying old products. it’s about our relationship with the new.’
his methods of destruction varied by gadget. to destroy an iphone 3g device, he used a heckler & koch handgun to blow a hole through it. to obliterate a set of ipod nanos, he placed the devices on a train track so that a locomotive would run over them.
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more commentsI would have had that phone, and swapped you my old one if you just wanted to break it.
I fix products that come in looking something like this. I keep saying people should learn how to take care of their expensive apple gadgets. Someone has to work hard to put this stuff together and when it gets broken (not…quite…like this….tho) someone has to work hard to put it back together. Think of the Logic Boards!
Apple worshippers/fans/fanatics must be crying in their closets when they see this.. and praying to Steve Jobs to forgive both Michael Tompert and Paul Fairchild for they know not what they have done.
this is really food for thought…
I quite enjoyed viewing this portrayal of resentment toward modern technology. Granted, technology has its benefits; but when we become so attached that these objects are a necessity rather than a mere tool then we’ve gone too far. What better an icon to depict this with than the over-glorified Apple brand. It is well recognized and its devout customer base is sure to get a rise out of this artists expression. And it seems that it worked. All of you complainers have proven yourselves entertained by the pieces in some way or another. I think it’d be interesting to see the result of this technological passion depicted. The emergence of these objects from a human heart that is eroding from the forces of nature. Maybe that would speak the point a little louder. But don’t get me wrong… I love technology. It’s truly a love hate relationship. Quite a dilemma.
I ran over my phone once. Am I a modern artist?
the fact that we’re all on our computers at this very moment spending time commenting on this, and the fact that he’s using a camera and other technology to present this concept to us, says a great deal about technology as well. its ironic that he’s criticizing the worlds dependance on technology through the use of other technology.
also i think you’d have to do more than simply smash ipods to get your idea across