safeway i

June 2020, ballpoint pen on paper bag 8.5” x 14”

Safeway is a drawing I completed while working at my grocery job when I was supervising the self checkout machines. I collected receipts left behind by customers that would’ve typically been thrown away or not even glanced at. By the end of the day, I had hundreds of receipts. I crumpled up the receipts I collected and arranged them in a still life, drawing them as my shift went on. I was beginning to think about how many receipts my individual grocery store prints a day and how these things keep adding up across multiple stores. While working behind the scenes, I see all the stuff corporations throw away simply because they are unsellable or useless. Thermal receipt paper is notorious for its negative effects on physical health and the environment. As I have been further exploring the concept of environmentalism and caring for the Earth, I have reconsidered my usage of material and how it can speak to my content. Since I was at work, my material and substrate choice was limited; this drawing was executed with a ballpoint pen and paper bag. This material choice has become a favorite of mine over the months as I continue to work with receipt drawings. As someone who is talking about ideas of endless garbage, I need to be more conscious about where my material comes from. I have been working on this by taking material that is readily available and/or using secondhand materials.