Can art highlight environmental issues without defacing it? A powerful answer came from “Yes, I Can,” an artwork by Mitch Laurenzana exhibited in September 2023 at the TD ART Gallery in Crema.
During the vernissage, Laurenzana surprised the audience with a symbolic act: he took a piece of bubblegum from his mouth and pressed it between the canvas and the frame. This wasn't just a protest, but a sharp provocation against "eco-vandalism." While others smear masterpieces, Laurenzana chose to complete his own work with a polluting reality.
"𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺" the artist explained. "𝘉𝘺 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘴: 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘶𝘮."
Gum is the planet's fourth most polluting waste. In Italy alone, 28 million pieces are consumed daily, with 23,000 tons ending up on the ground. Beyond taking five years to degrade, the economic impact is staggering: removing a single piece costs over €1, totaling one billion euros annually in national cleaning costs. What happened in Crema was an act of "pure art" - an alternative eco-activism that shifts the focus toward the long-term consequences of our daily habits.