For this Sustainable Systems project we were asked to collect our trash for a week, so that by the end of the challenge we were to create a still life, a beautiful collection of our trash.
I have to say, I think I had it a little too easy during this challenge. Although collecting my trash and storing it opened my eyes to just how much trash I actually made, I don’t think I had it as bad as some other kids. First of all, sustainability is something that both inspires and haunts me; so I find myself stopping specific behaviors I know are bad for the planet (like getting a coffee every day). Second of all, I’m vegan (and also eat pretty plant-based), and because of this my food tends to be less processed and therefore packaged differently (if packaged at all — also because I have erasable produce and grocery bags). Third of all, I live at Kerrey so I tend to not need to rush when I do eat at the UC, that allows me to grab a plate instead of a container (most of the time). Living at Kerrey also allowed me to drop off my trash often, making it less of a struggle to add tp the collection.
Anyways, I started off this project thinking I would only discard food scraps and tea bags, but it turns out I produce some random trash here and there that really starts to add up. Especially this week, I noticed just how many scrap pieces of materials I throw out when working on a project. As I was working on an origami project, I had many extra pieces of paper, but since I was so hyper aware of trash I ended up using these scraps as pieces to my origami. Overall, I think this week showed me that even though I thought I was doing a lot for the planet, I could really take it a step further (especially considering how willing and passionately I want to — why not take advantage).
However, after the week was over and I was looking at my trash I was at loss for what to create. I took a look at what the prompt specifically said, and attempted to recall what was discussed in class. In art, when I think of a “still life” I think of a scene created as a reference for painting, usually containing objects like flowers and fruits on a table. This idea of what still life is gave my project direction. When taking in to consideration the fact that we had to make this collection of trash “beautiful” and valuable, I decided to create a flush and sophisticated bouquet of “flowers”. To me, flowers in a home portray a the large amount of care and life present in the home. People attribute flower bouquets with elegance and beauty, therefore the presentation of trash as a beautiful bouquet elevates the trash from something to be hidden in a bin to something that brings life and beauty in to a home — something people go out of their way to care for and appreciate.
With my idea in mind, I sorted through my trash, using tough trash as stems and stem-like decorations, and softer trash as tinplates for different kinds of flowers, twisting them in to different shapes. I used scissors to create new shapes in containers, pieces of paper, and tea bags. After creating my bouquet, I chose to present it and photograph it in the least trash way possible, on a simple clean dinner table, where the “flowers” are the only thing to look at. This minimal aesthetic gives the a sterile feeling, and its simple color palette a calming sensation. As a neat freak, this is the opposite of how trash makes me feel. Bellow is my final image.
