Auckland street art co-operative The Cut Collective will unveil its latest installation, "Illegal Tender", on Saturday.
"It's an idealised notion of a television game show, which illustrates the commercial way we live," artist Ross Liew said yesterday.
"The game of life you play out at the whim of a dice roll and how our influence on daily life is limited by the structures that are in place," he said.
"Illegal Tender" is centred on a 24m by 4m wall mural and also features space and sculptural elements, such as a false shop front and a newspaper.
The installation looks at the role of money in modern society and the social implications of consumerism, political corruption and gentrification.
"The basic theme is a tongue-in-cheek look at wastefulness, sustainability and negative byproducts and how everybody is comfortable enough not to do anything about it," Mr Liew said.
The installation also addressed the blurred line between high and low art and the increasing relevance of graffiti in contemporary art.
The six artists started working on the installation two months ago in Auckland and have spent this week transforming the Dunedin gallery space.
"We had the dimensions of the space and some photos.
But photos of a blank wall are photos of a blank wall.
"We planned it out on paper and a computer and then translated that into the individual elements. I'm just happy we got all the calculations right."
More than 60 cans of spraypaint were used in the work.
"It's drawn on everyone's natural abilities and everyone's done everything together. We had to ditch our signature styles. Every decision was challenged and rethought. All artists have egos and to leave that behind and work collectively has been really liberating."
"Illegal Tender" opens in the Alexander McMillan Gallery at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery on Saturday and runs until January 23.
