Museum of Modern Shopping (MoMS) is a para-museum and platform for conversation and collaboration on issues relating to the architecture – both physical, virtual, social, economic and psychological – of shopping. MoMS is a project by artist Laura Yuile.

The idea for Museum of Modern Shopping emerged from the Covid-19 lockdown era - a time when many of us were refined to our homes, whilst others continued working in factories, shops, and distribution centers, ensuring we could still buy our essential - and not-so-essential - goods during this time. Masked queues for supermarkets, shortages of toilet paper and flour, a plague of ads on social media for unnecessary and bizarre products sold by Wish.com and shipped from China - it was an uncomfortable but important time to reflect on the infrastructures and habits of consumption, convenience, necessity, and desire that we have developed as a global society.

Throughout 2022, MoMS presented a series of discussions, exhibitions, events, workshops and podcasts that explored the politics and design of retail and how it shapes our urban and online landscapes; our communities and our social identities. MoMS was resident through 2022 in Romford Shopping Hall in Romford, East London, funded by the Arts Council England, where most of these exhibitions took place. One exhibition was also realised in collaboration with Phytology - a cultural institute based at the Bethnal Green Nature Reserve in Tower Hamlets, East London.

In 2024, MoMS opened a temporary space in a retail unit in Dajing Village, Zhangzhou Development Zone, Fujian Province, China, and presented another series of exhibitions. This emerged from MoMS founder relocating to work for the University for the Creative Arts, at their China campus - the Institue for Creativity and Innovation (ICI) - which is a partnership with Xiamen University. The space provided an opportunity for ICI students and staff to present work in a public context and engage with the local community beyond the campus gates. This space is now run collectively by a number of ICI staff and continues to host events and exhibitions, such as the Weird Shop series.

MoMS currently has no physical space and is open to invitations, commissions, and proposals for collaborations.

Get in touch:  studio@laurayuile.com