My work explores human emotional terrain brought to life through landscape dioramas crafted from recycled materials. Each piece, from cathartic volcanos to soothing islands, represents an emotional state within my own internal landscape. To animate these sculptures, I turn to photography. It not only breathes life into these pieces; it highlights the emotional lens through which I view these natural scenes. In essence, the photographs reveal the divergence between my internal experiences and how they might be perceived by others.
The materials in my work echo the emotions we often discard or ignore. By transforming consumer waste into representations of natural environments, I engage in a form of spiritual recycling, instilling meaning in the discarded. These sculpted environments provide an exploration of the human condition. A waterfall's ever-changing nature mirrors fluctuating thoughts and moods. The passage from a cave to the outside world signifies the transition to informed understanding, while the intensity of the desert sun encapsulates potent emotional states such as grief, ecstasy, and acute anxiety.
My creative process underscores the wider implications of overconsumption, a symptom of our failure to recognize value within ourselves, which often leads to overconsumption and environmental harm. My work invites viewers to reflect on the connection between their own emotional states and their consumption patterns.