Nelson Saiers: "Arbitrage" (2016)
N. S.: The piece "Arbitrage" addresses one of the most interesting events I ever experienced or witnessed during my financial career, which some commentators describe as the mother of all short squeezes where Volkswagen, the German auto manufacturer, went from 200 to 1000 over several days; and in doing so, became the biggest company in the world, eclipsing ExxonMobil and Apple computer.
And, so in the piece, you'll see a black Volkswagen Bug which is on a scale next to an apple on a scale—the idea being that Volkswagen was larger than Apple. On the gas tank you'll see "XOM only" (or "ExxonMobil only") which means that ExxonMobil fit inside a Volkswagen, because, as I said, Volkswagen had the largest market capitalization in the world.
The remainder of the piece—all the graffiti on the Volkswagen Bug—wrestled with historical events related to short squeezes or, you know, stocks that experienced this type of an event and various individuals related to short squeezes.
[Photo courtesy of Nelson Saiers]