The Garbage

Artist Bio:
Jenny is a Hong Kong and UK-based photographer with a background in art. She graduated from the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology in 2020 with a BA in Photography and graduated from the University of Leeds in 2022 with an MA in Art Gallery and Museum Studies.
Jenny's photographic style is characterized by the presentation of documentary images rooted in her senses and vision. She explores diverse experimental methods to showcase images, emphasizing the emotional interplay between images and individuals. Her thematic focus revolves around emotional expression, female growth, and pertinent social issues. Through her unconventional presentation techniques, she prompts viewers to challenge preconceived notions and expand their perspectives.

Work Statement:
In this series, the term constantly belittled and misunderstood - "garbage" - serves as the central theme. It acts as a medium and metaphor for the upper-level suppression experienced during one's growth, encompassing oppression from parents, educational institutions, elders, and societal values. In the educational culture of China, being labeled as garbage can render all your efforts worthless. Many Asian students or youths, under intense mental pressure from an early age, go to extreme lengths to prove that they are not worthless.

Is the term "garbage" inherently sinful? Why is garbage equated with worthlessness? This project explores the definition and reality of garbage in two parts, delving into the life cycle of garbage.

The first part employs documentary photography to directly confront the situation of garbage in reality, the processes of garbage disposal, and the groups handling the waste. It explores the essence of waste. I magnify overlooked details, questioning the definition of garbage. True classification becomes elusive. Does garbage truly disappear? Clearly not. The journey from being valued to being considered useless is only the initial stage of garbage's destiny.

After entering the garbage truck, a journey beyond the city begins, reaching the waste processing site. Here, garbage brings new value to workers, attracting recycling facilities. As materials are repurchased, reprocessed, and transformed into new items, re-entering the public domain, the recycling cycle unfolds. This illustrates the vitality of recycling and the similarities between the labels and values of items and individuals - perceived value constantly fluctuates.

If humans bestow the meaning of words, then I will redefine the term "garbage" in this series. They serve humanity, have all their value squeezed out, and then are discarded, yet these seemingly valueless entities provide more value to a group of people whose livelihood depends on waste management.