Salvatore Vitale's 'SABOTAGE' Exhibition at Photo Elysée Examines Gig Economy Exploitation

From 6 March to 31 May, Photo Elysée in Lausanne will host 'SABOTAGE,' an exhibition by photographer Salvatore Vitale. This showcase centers on the experiences of South African freelancers within digital economies and features Vitale's extensive four-year project, 'Death by GPS,' which investigates labor exploitation and algorithmic control. The exhibition reveals how gig economy frameworks echo colonial dynamics, with platforms in the Global North depending on labor from the Global South. Vitale's collaboration with South African freelancers emphasizes co-authorship and connects historical colonial extraction to contemporary platform changes, highlighting 2.8 million gig workers in the UK and 1.5 billion worldwide. The display includes corporate corridors, fragmented workspaces, and an e-waste scene, drawing on various theorists to illustrate that gig work's flexibility often masks underlying exploitation.