aleksandra wałaszek

MY FIRST BUSINESS

collaboration with Paula del Castillo Cabeza

performance, identical uniforms, beggars signs |2010|

Strasbourg, France

The increasing trend of begging on street corners or inside public transport, has been adapted as a type of business. The beggars have brought a certain professionalism to their jobs. They are well organized and do their work with a lot of planning. It’s an everyday routine. In simple words, we can say that this is one way to earn your living. On the whole, begging is a great resource generator for many people who are happily engaged in this “work”. As we turned our attention to this incredible case, we decided to create our own begging association. It‘s work anybody can do, so we decided to become professional beggars for a day and work an eight-hour schedule. We were self-employed and we had our own uniforms, identity boards and places in the center of touristic city - Strasbourg. Located a few meters away from each other. We acted like professionals, begging for alms without saying anything to each other and making ourselves visible as a team.

We earned our first 50 euros in 2 hours.