generational waste
The goal of my Senior Thesis Art project is to tell my familial and personal story of stuff through photographs. I was brought up in an environment that showed extremes of overconsumption as normal, which led me to realize how it relates to society’s casual and constant hyper-consumerism. In my images, you see the stuff + me. That’s how it’s always felt. Through my work, I aim to show the world the negative impacts of overconsumption and the control it can have over our lives.
Layers in Dad’s Garage Where I Used to Play (Shelves lined with car parts. Leaning against his 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A racecar. As a child, I would pump the brakes and ride along for free laps at racetracks. I remember the comforting smell of fuel whenever he’d run that old engine), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Growth After Disaster (Swedish ivy growing amongst the melted rubber, plastic and back windshield shards from Uncle Dan’s van catching on fire), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Rusted Glow (Peering through the window of Uncle Dan’s burned van), Inkjet archival print, 2021
In My Childhood Bedroom (I loved American Girl Dolls and had way too many toys), Inkjet archival print, 2021
In Uncle Dan’s Bedroom, Inkjet archival print, 2021
Still Standing (Scared because the burned planks could fall on us), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Reflecting Back to an Innocent Time Before I Understood (In Aunt Nancy’s old bedroom at Memaw’s house), Inkjet archival print, 2020
In Uncle Dan’s Bedroom 2, Inkjet archival print, 2021
Mom with Memaw and Pepaw in 1960 and Mom in 2020 Sorting Through Boxes to be Trashed, Inkjet archival print, 2020
Look at Me (In My Childhood Bedroom 2), Inkjet archival print, 2020
Make Your Mark (Ghastly handprints left from intruders line Dan’s walls), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Decay (Ceiling tiles in Uncle Dan’s garage slowly deteriorate and fall from moisture), Inkjet archival print, 2021
In Uncle Dan’s Bedroom 3, Inkjet archival print, 2021
Soon-To-Be Wasted Knotty Pine (My parents saved as much as they could, ripping off baseboards and crown moldings before Memaw’s house gets bulldozed), Inkjet archival print, 2020
Uncle Dan’s Burned and Ransacked Bathroom, Inkjet archival print, 2021
Uncle Dan’s Rambler Before-and-After, May 28, 2015 and February 8, 2021 (He loved that car and his daughter wanted to take it back to Louisiana after his death, but it burned in the fire), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Hop In, Let’s Go For a Ride, Inkjet archival print, 2021
Unclean (Fire extinguishing chemicals left glowing streaks on his bathtub), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Uncle Dan’s House Has Hosted Many Visitors Since He Died (Evidence: 8/21/20 7:00pm), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Intruders Kicked-In Dan’s Front Door and Left Muddy Footprints, Inkjet archival print, 2021
Things Are Not as They Should Be (Fan blades sag, speakers melted, furniture overturned, trash covered floors, walls smoldered for days), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Dad’s Legs Dangle and Bring Life to a Dead Space (Memaw’s House), Inkjet archival print, 2020
In-a-Sense Lost (Dan loved lighthouses), Inkjet archival print, 2021
No One Else Noticed the Broken Window and Loose Boards Upstairs (Securing Dan’s house), Inkjet archival print, 2021
What Remains (8 months after Uncle Dan’s death and 6 months after the fire), Inkjet archival print, 2021
Hundreds of Glass Jars Linger in Memaw’s Backyard (Memaw and Pepaw used to throw trash outside or burn it before they had trash pick-up), Inkjet archival print, 2020