Portraits of friends, family, neighbors and other acquaintances make the problem of excessive waste hard to ignore. 7 Days of Garbage is instant archaeology, a record not only of our waste but of our values.
7 Days of Garbage (2014)
Since I was a kid, I’ve wondered about garbage - what happens when we run out of places to put it? The average American generates 4 pounds of garbage a day. As a nation, we generate 4 million tons of waste, weekly. I’m concerned not only by how much we throw away, but by how blithe we are to the problem. I set out to create pictures that make the trash problem impossible to ignore. I asked family, friends, neighbors and other acquaintances to save their trash and recyclables for a week and then to lie down and be photographed in it. I included my family because I want my 7-year-old son to understand we’re contributing to the problem, too. By asking us to look at ourselves, I’ve found that some are considering the issue more deeply and are beginning to take steps to mitigate the crisis. Reflecting on the pictures I’ve made so far, I see 7 Days of Garbage as instant archeology, a record not only of our waste but of our values – values that may be evolving a little.