Dumpster diving













Dumpster Diving, to seize food from the trash container, means to defy the agreement and return the status of food. But perhaps above all, it is also a criticism of the enormous wealth that enables a bag full of sparkling decent food.

The difference between food that is sold and food that is garbage do not need to have much to do with the food itself. The food available on store shelves may have flaws, and the food that gets thrown in the trash can be error-free. So it is rather the context that determines how we see and feel about food, and the waste process becomes almost a ritual act which alters the social agreement on the status of the discarded.

Another ritual behavior that can change the status of anything is photography. The question is what happens when these two actions join. My exhibition therefore consists of pictures of food taken from garbage containers. The material I used are also things that are not normally used, but relegated to the residual layer and garbage: The pictures are taken with the self-modified pinhole camera in Hungarian low quality film, printed on leftover paper in odd formats and put into second hand frames.


Text and photo © Mattias Lundblad

Comments

Mr Urbano said…
this is pure joy
thanks Mattias
Johan said…
The second one is perfect!

Johan
br said…
great work and comment on the aesthetics of food....especially in times when people would eat cardboard to relieve hunger.
cafe selavy said…
Fantastic images.
Tiberio Fanti said…
It's a splendind and elegant work. I feel in tune with you. In my work environment I'm considered a herald of "reuse" (design reuse in this case), probably 'cause I dive every day into the dumpsters/drawers of all my colleagues spread around the world.
GC said…
superb images!
paulboo said…
I was brought up thinking it a virtual crime to throw away perfectly good food, these days the stuff gets disposed of because it is past a "best before" date! Doesn't mean it's rotten food...!!
We waste so much while others starve, that's a crime.
Mattias said…
And they even throw away perfectly fine things "best before March 2011" It's a mystery...