A visual representation of my feelings on gifts, this untitled publication is packaged as such. Encased in a delicate envelope, only accessible through untying the thread tied around it, is a collection of photographs I have taken (and some have taken of me). The subjects of these photos include loved ones of mine, and are centered around particular moments and memories. Regardless of their subject, the photos follow places, people, things that I view as gifts of joy. Through my packaging of these photos, I am redistributing these gifts to others in the hopes that they will feel semblances of this joy through the physical act of unwrapping my gift to them.
Angels in Decay is made from magazine cutouts. The intended goal of the zine is to represent the beauty of what it means to be alive in this world – the beauty of human nature. Through incorporating visual elements of the natural world, I connect our existence as people back to where we came from. At our core, we are animals. Sometimes I feel that we need to be reminded of that. If you are looking for an answer to the question “what does it mean to be alive?” in the piece, you won’t find it. The zine was purely exploratory. I don’t know the answer yet, I probably never will, but through making this zine, I was able to dive deeper into my own relationship with the concepts of life and humanity in a way that I could never do verbally.
