Artist Statement

A Closer Look

Leona Lozanova

To create my project, I used colored pencils and a gel pen to make a picture of children working in a sweatshop. Each child makes an item from a different brand that uses child labor. In the image, they are making the following: a pair of Nike shoes, an Urban Outfitters boba lamp, an Adidas tank top, Victoria’s Secret perfume, a Forever 21 makeup kit, an Apple phone, and a pair of H&M jeans. The image has a black background. I used a picture mosaic to make an online photo mosaic. The background photos are all pictures of stores or products of companies that use child labor. 

I chose right 23 in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, workers' rights. "Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favorable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment." But unfortunately, this right has been violated throughout the entire world. One hundred and sixty million children between the ages of 5 and 17 were in child labor in 2021, and 79 million of them were in a hazardous workplace. Out of them, 3.3 million kids were trapped in forced labor. 

Even though it is illegal in the United States, child labor still exists both nationally and internationally. In the United States, there have been multiple examples of violations of the law. In LA, one Victoria's Secret employee said they were paid 12 cents per vest. At most, she could make 2 vests, which is only 24 cents per hour. The clothing was then sold for $13.80 at the store. This is not an anomaly; many major and popular brands are built on children's mistreated and underpaid work. For example, H&M has kids as young as 14 working 12 or more hours daily. This means they have no way of going to school. Adidas's factories have child labor, forced overtime, sexual harassment, and do not pay a living wage. Apple batteries are mined by children, causing severe physical harm. Disney makes their products with child labor in China, Bangladesh, and Haiti. In Haiti, the employees (including minors) make 30 cents per hour and are often sexually harassed. They are also exposed to harmful chemicals, which can be detrimental to both their physical health and intellectual development. In Uzbekistan, the government takes millions of children out of school and forces them to pick cotton during harvest. 

Though they are not working in hazardous factories, some children have to drop out of school and have to work to provide for their families. This is especially common in large families with too many children for the parents alone to support. I know someone in Ecuador who has not been in school consistently since he was ten years old. Instead, he had to sell bread to provide for himself and his family.

From reading this and viewing my art piece, I hope you will better understand fast fashion. Next time you buy something from one of the listed brands, consider where the products came from and who made them. It is challenging to altogether avoid these brands. Instead, try to buy from them less and instead support companies with fair labor practices like Eileen Fisher, Patagonia, Cariuma, and Veja.