Artist Qualeasha Wood Alleges Plagiarism in Viral 'BedRot' Performance
Artist Qualeasha Wood has accused another artist known as Aphex Redditor of copying her earlier performance work. Wood staged a piece titled 'Attention Economy' in March 2025 at London's Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, where she remained in bed while a screen displayed her phone activity, referencing 'bed rotting' behavior. She repeated this performance at the Victoria & Albert Museum in September. In March 2026, Aphex Redditor presented 'BedRot' at Eastern Bloc in Montreal, involving similar elements of lying in bed while scrolling through Instagram Reels with a screen showing the content. Wood publicly criticized the similarities on social media, suggesting racial dynamics influenced the differing reception. Aphex Redditor stated they were unaware of Wood's prior work and developed their performance independently, focusing on algorithmic observation.
Key facts
- Qualeasha Wood accused Aphex Redditor of copying her performance art concept.
- Wood's 'Attention Economy' was presented in London in March 2025 and September 2025.
- Aphex Redditor's 'BedRot' occurred in Montreal in March 2026.
- Both performances involved artists lying in bed while screens showed social media scrolling.
- Wood suggested racial bias affected the viral attention received by the later work.
Entities
Artists
- Qualeasha Wood
- Aphex Redditor
Institutions
- Pippy Houldsworth Gallery
- Victoria & Albert Museum
- Eastern Bloc
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
Locations
- London
- Montreal
Sources
- ARTnews —