§ 05 — Who and why
My name is Snezhana. Or Jane. As you want. I am a sociologist who lives in Paris and makes photographs of garbage.
I was just wondering... What do people throw away? And what does that say about us?
Garbage of Paris started in 2022 as a private observation practice and became a public archive. I'm not a professional photographer, and I don't strive for perfection.
What really interests me is how the things we throw away become an invisible part of our daily lives
The project sits between visual sociology, urban ethnography, and what some might call contemporary art practice - though I am not attached to any of these categories. The photographs exist. You can look at them or not.
I’ve always looked up in every sense of the word. But one day something happened, and I looked down. Now, whenever I notice trash, I immediately take a picture of it.
Every photograph in this archive has a date and a location because place and time matter. Trash is always unique. As unique as every walk
This isn’t a serious, methodologically rigorous project. I already write research papers and love sociology. Perhaps it’s more of an observational exercise? My friends and family already send me photos of garbage cans, so what else do I need to be happy?
"Like people, garbage tends to stay close to other garbage."