Keenan’s Final Project
The Project: The project began when I noticed a substantial accumulation of bottles and other waste around my apartment and studio. My goal was to find a use for my previously accumulated trash as well as begin a system that helps regulate the amount of waste I produce as a whole.
In order to find a purpose for my waste I created a miniature landfill. By cutting the tops of my glass bottles, I was able to put my collected trash into the bottles, on top of which I plant grass seeds. This process forces me to slow down and acknowledge everything that I consume. Not only am I forced to slow down and see what I consume, I am tied to the process of nature. This project’s fundamental purpose is to reestablish the way I relate to my outside world. My project was to cut down the amount of useless waste I produce while simultaneously finding a purpose for the actual waste I produce.
Process: In order to begin the process I had to purchase three things, a bottle cutter, soil, and grass seed. These were all fairly cheap and will last for quite a while. The bottle I collected over the past semester from both my apartment and friend’s apartments. Once I had my materials I began a few test bottles. A few of the bottles grew with great successes, others never grew at all. Many of the larger bottles failed to grow and I had to replant them. After I established my system and enough bottle were collected I planted about fifty small bottles, each hand cut, filled with trash, and planted. Unfortunately, the majority of the grass has yet to begin growing because of limited light during the day. Additionally, I have begun a compost pile for my food waste, and will hopefully be producing my own dirt in the near future. This will cut down on my consumption as well as feed back into the project.
Future Proposal: My proposal for the future is to continue this process and create an installation. Within the next year I hope to have enough bottles to fill a small gallery space. Ideally, the space is a small square layout. The floor of the gallery space will be completely filled grass bottles. This will force the viewer to relate to the room itself as an object rather than just the objects.
