I printed on 8 of the red t-shirts last Monday. The message "DON'T SHOOT" was on my mind -even before I heard of the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO. This phrase, on the surface, is obviously referring to violence in our culture today. It also expresses my frustration with the media, and the polarity of opinions on gun ownership. Despite anti-violence demonstrations (that in Ferguson are becoming violent themselves), only a few legislative actions are addressing the issues of mental health, gun availability, and the rights of both owners and non-owners. Guns are a deeply rooted in American culture. How does gun violence imprint all of us?
Next Life: sorting
After 8 hours of sorting and folding, here's the checklist:
174 t-shirts:
118 Solid
23 with logo/text
7 image or decoration
10 all-over printed or floral
16 striped
67 children's garments
56 shorts:
24 twill
10 Athletic
11 denim
5 cotton knit
3 polyester doubleknit
3 plaid/printed
57 short sleeve shirts
42 pants:
18 cropped
5 black denim
11 woven
8 knit
13 sleepwear
10 dresses
6 skirts
2 jackets
2 hats
1 sweater
1 belt
Total 431 (+10 I kept for my own closet = 441)
Next Life
118 solid color t-shirts, sorted by color
Yesterday I bought 5 garbage bags full of discarded clothing from the local thrift store for $25. Not to worry: they were happy to reduce their overabundant supply. It seems that folks donate a lot more clothing than can be sold. I had requested worn-out and un-sellable garments, and only one piece out of 441 was too worn to wear. I kept 10 intact for my own closet, 2% of the total.
Why did I buy all this? I wondered what kinds of clothes people discard, and what happens to it. From Travels of a T-shirt, I know that used clothing is a complex economic system involving sourcing, transporting, and marketing. You think you're doing a good deed by giving your "gently used" clothing to charity. In reality, only a small amount of used apparel can be sold at second-hand stores or given away. A lot of it gets shredded into rags. Some gets shipped overseas. I think we can do better.
My goals for this project:
1. Create useful objects
2. Make a creative statement challenging our consumer habits
3. Make these things look good - diminish the appearance of recycled material
First step: Sort and observe
Next: See what I can do with it. Check back next week!