BAGS: DESIGN CAPSTONE PROJECT

My first work experience was bagging at a grocery store chain in Ohio. My Design Degree Project grew out of my fascination with plastic bags as a medium for everyday design. The first piece of art I hung up in my college apartment was a framed plastic bag from the local convenience store in my student neighborhood. I admit that this project is extremely simple and, in my opinion, unsophisticated in concept. Regardless, it feels incredibly personal for me, as my curiosity and continued attention to this ordinary object followed me throughout my entire undergraduate career. BAGS explores a unique range of plastic bag designs collected from local businesses in Boston, contrasted against its more sustainable alternative, the paper bag. The intention of this book is not to glorify or promote the use of plastic bags. Rather, it critiques single-use plastic in order to encourage meaningful dialogue around daily practices that have become major contributors to environmental destruction and ecosystem degradation.