Taking shape of a click farm, a device used to generate artificial internet traffic, the work explores the rapid rate of smartphone penetration and growth of social media usage in rural China. The farm consists of twelve smartphones, with all internal components removed, leaving a mere empty shell. Internals were replaced with acrylic plates, laser-engraved with The Twelve Ornaments (Shí'èr zhāng). These ancient Chinese symbols are considered highly auspicious and were usually employed in the decoration of textiles, signifying authority and power.
With the country's unprecedented development, rural regions became industrialized over the course of a decade. With the spread of lightning-fast internet and budget smartphones, some multigenerational farmers have turned to social media as a superior source of income. Livestreaming themselves farming rice allowed them to generate more income than the crop itself.
