Informal Circuits is a multi-channel video installation that offers a look into the work of three smartphone repairers in a small city in Belgium. The videos show the precise actions and techniques required to repair electronic devices, and fragments from conversations with the repairers reveal the complex relationship between local craftsmanship and a global network of knowledge, production and (imitation) parts.

Smartphone repair is an important element of a more sustainable, local and circular future. Yet smartphone repair shops are often surrounded by negative connotations and placed in the shadow of other – celebrated and subsidised – initiatives like fablabs and makerspaces. Informal Circuits instead wants to make the work of telephone repairers visible as a modern form of craft that can extend the lifespan of electronic devices and reduce e-waste.