ARTIST

Concern regarding the environment prompted me to visit one of the most evident hallmarks of our current throw-away culture, the city landfill. I was captivated by the rich juxtapositions of textures covering nearly every square-foot of the landfill’s surface. Amidst the mud and rubble were partially decomposed food, cow carcasses, broken toys, crushed plastic bottles and brand-new items still in their packaging. Plastic bags and diapers were everywhere. Chaotically intermingled with mud were books, bicycle tires and countless household items that would not have been discarded in less affluent parts of the world. 

The visit had a profound effect on me and I sought permission to make direct castings from the landfill terrain. With access to restricted sites, I was able to document areas that in a day would be forever buried. The schedule of encroaching bulldozers gave my work a sense of urgency. Propane cannons blasted at regular intervals to ward off seagulls and the everpresent stench of rotting material seemed at times unbearable.

Displayed as art these casts bring the subject of our collective waste into view for close inspection. Iridescent and reflective surfaces such as graphite powder and gold leaf serve to illuminate these fragments. Transforming these casts into hardened materials of plaster and bronze signifies the permanence of our waste to remain for future generations.