An overwhelming reality of life in the 2020s is that we – all of us - are deluged with plastic. While only available in the last 60 years, plastics have repackaged and reshaped our experience of the world. They are so ubiquitous that it has become hard to imagine life without them, there being as many uses for plastics as there are new product ideas to ‘improve’ our lives, and, in the case of cosmetics and toiletries, ‘enhance’ our sense of self-worth. Tiny microplastics are present as constituents of everyday beauty products, ranging from makeup to hair spray.
Seeing is Believing shows former milk containers smeared with or accompanied by ordinary consumer products such as shaving cream, lipsticks, face scrubs and hair products. In employing a high degree of abstraction and colouration I have tried to amplify our sense of microplastic constituents by suggesting their presence, even though they are invisible or barely visible: hence the title. Some of us may read the product details on these products but for those of us without a background in chemistry it is difficult to infer meaningful information. More often an opposite rule applies, products containing microplastics are marketed to enhance our sense of self-worth.
This series was at The Pingyao International Photography Festival in China on 19th September, 2021 curated by Professor Liz Wells.
Founded in 1997, the Pingyao International Photography Festival is China’s most prestigious photo festival, featuring images from more than 50 countries each year in indoor and outdoor venues across the UNESCO-listed ancient city.
Seeing is Believing was exhibited alongside The Entangled Bank, which deals with discarded plastic bottles (see gallery) on the roadside with photographers Mandy Barker and Andy Hughes.
