Wear it out

The National Australia Bank is running a series of ads featuring a man and woman wearing the new 'mini' credit card as jewellery. They are quite curious images. The man and woman look almost identity, with bold Roman profiles that shroud half their faces in chiaroscuro. But credit cards as jewellery? While it is a tongue in cheek campaign, it does reflect the increasing use of capital and ornament. Like the labels on underwear that were exposed above the waist. Or the sexy mobile phones to carry around. All this does suggest some sort of implosion, where the medium of capital becomes its central message, and as consumers we identify not with the objects we buy but the cards we use to make these purchases.