Saâdane Afif Old Shelton Wet/Dry 5 Gallon, Old Hoover Convertible Doubledecker, 2026

Saâdane Afif's Old Shelton Wet/Dry 5 Gallon, Old Hoover Convertible Doubledecker consists of two vacuum cleaners, arranged on top of each other in a plexiglas vitrine illuminated from below by what appear to be neon bulbs. On top is the Hoover Convertible, below the Shelton Wet/Dry 5 Gallon model. Both hoovers have visibly aged: we easily discern traces of use, piles of dust, and uncountable scratches. The neon tubes are custom-made look-a-likes using LED lights.

The work belongs to a series titled The Old that directly references Jeff Koons’ seminal series The New (1979–1987). In Koons' original installations, immaculate and freshly manufactured vacuum cleaners were displayed within illuminated Plexiglas vitrines, transformed into icons of purity and consumer desire. Untouched by time, they appeared suspended in a state of perpetual newness, their pristine surfaces asserting an almost devotional faith in technological progress and the promises of modernity.