I chose this idea because we often forget how important it is to recycle items. Plastic remains a huge problem, ruining many of our oceans and the marine life that inhabits it. Although I am not very knowledgeable on this topic, I have seen enough articles and images to know that the plastic problem surpasses the ability that a metal straw can handle. We should be more aware of the plastic we use, other than a straw; especially since the entire cup that is now straw-less is still made of plastic.
I was hoping to communicate the fact that the plastic container and plastic straw could have easily been put in a recycling bin. Adding a few extra seconds or minutes into my life by trying to find somewhere to recycle my cup is worth avoiding the years of damage that it can contribute to. As a society, we are so reliant on making things portable and easy for the consumer that we forget how badly it is affecting the world that we live in. There is only one Earth that we have and, as a group, we are doing a terrible job at maintaining its plentiful resources and variety. It is time to be more aware of the effect plastic has on our world, and to do our part in helping to alleviate some of the plastic problem.
I think I was successful in capturing the nonchalant way that many of us throw away our plastic, unaware that it can easily be recycled. We often favor accessibility over the overall cause and effect of our actions, which I believe I portrayed by dropping my plastic cup into an unmarked trashcan. Especially since our campus is marked with tons of recycling bins, I could have easily headed to one of those instead.
If I did it again I would try to get a recycling bin in the background to further showcase the ignorance/forgetfulness that many people have towards the plastic problem. This would have highlight the fact that walking a few more feet would have made the smallest difference for me but a bigger difference for the plant.
Another idea I would be interested in exploring is the amount of animals that are becoming endangered. Society often forgets that humans are not the only inhabitants of Earth; we are sharing it with beautiful creatures. Unfortunately, many of those beautiful creatures will be gone forever if we do not raise the proper awareness and form the correct preventive measures to help with this issue.
Julliane's Art 110 