Utah

“Desert Highway Cleansing”

Trash Collection Projects

2000

Following my decision to address environmental issues with my work, I began documenting various natural elements of a remote area in the Canyonlands of Utah by photographing plants and rocks inside clear containers which functioned as framing devices. To my surprise, besides the “natural” materials, I encountered an inordinate amount of discarded industrially manufactured objects such as beer bottles, cans, etc. I felt it was necessary to document the dichotomy of man and nature and in doing so began what would become a series of “Trash Collection Projects.”

Later, I noticed litter lining both sides of a very scenic stretch of desert Highway 191 in Utah. I decided to “Adopt a Highway” and cleaned the stretch between mile markers 176 and 177. I photographed each object I picked up, and sorted my findings by category to create “Self Portrait With 12 Bags of Trash.”