TRASH

As part of a class I have just begun I read half of a contemporary photography textbook today and consequently my mind is a wee bit saturated in contemporary photography ideas.

Beginning this project I considered the questions what objects would I use to define myself and what objects could I use to tell my story?
What I think gives this image significance is that we live in an age where we so commonly create our identity with objects: what kind of car we drive and its unique license plate number, what kind of computer, cell phone, or camera you have, what clothing brand you wear. The ultimate repository for these objects and a plenitude of others is more often than not the trash. Out of the garbage bearing each of our own personal stamps has risen the opportunity for identity theft. The idea that it is possible for someone to "steal your identity" from only the objects we throw away affirms the importance of questioning what makes up our identities.
While some of the items in this image are not usually in the trash due to their "importance," people are able to fake an identity with everyday trash items. This image, for me, questions what identity is made up of and what its value is. Is it the piece of paper which allows me to have a bank account, work, and live in my country, or is it the tissue that has my DNA on it and the wrappers of food that is ingested and used by my body to remake and sustain itself?