Photo as a Conduit of Waste: Abandoned Malls and the Ruins of Consumerism
This project explores abandoned shopping malls as conduits of waste, revealing how American consumerism leaves lasting scars on both culture and the environment. Once thriving, these malls now sit empty, filled with broken fixtures, gutted storefronts, and discarded signs that echo the disposability of the system that built them.
Malls symbolize the cycle of overproduction and abandonment: spaces designed for endless consumption that, when demand shifts, are left to decay. Each image documents not just physical waste but also the wasted energy that can never be reclaimed.
These structures remind us that the pursuit of endless growth generates emptiness, both material and environmental, and challenge us to reconsider the true cost of what we consume.
