CRAFT - Peel and Core

In a powerful feat of artistry, Fernando Laposse explores the harsh underbelly of Mexico's avocado trade

- ANNAH MARTIN

 Ademure palette of rose, lavender, and ochre belies the dark subject matter of “Conflict Avocados,” Fernando Laposse’s new installation at the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne, Australia. Images of destruction are stitched together into a 137-foot-long tapestry, wrapping one gallery of the museum’s Triennial exhibition to tell the shocking story of the fruit. “It’s often seen as this healthy, ethical thing,” explains Laposse, a Mexican designer whose work has explored the commercialization of indigenous corn and agave. “But if you look at everything that has to be destroyed for an avocado to get to you, it’s crazy.”