The Photographic Journal

Rubber Glove Street Scenes

Essay 440 • May 4th 2020

Last week, I began documenting the pandemic and noticed an amazing amount of rubber gloves strewn over the ground. On April Fools' Day, I set out to document this unusual event and spent the afternoon walking the L train route through Bushwick and Williamsburg. During this 3 hour trip, I documented over 400 gloves discarded on the ground.

Carefully, trying to keep my distance from others at all times, I squatted down to the gloves' level. Trash on the streets of New York isn’t new to me, but I was deeply disturbed by these gloves. Each glove shone individually, so beautifully sad and disgusting at the same time. Little bodies thrust onto sewer grates, next to cigarettes, rolled into car tires, and next to other trash partners. I did fear what each glove might contain (I wasn’t wearing gloves, scared to pick them up to discard them). In the end, I was saddened to know that the gloves would be swept into the sewers and out to sea -- humanity's continuous mark on the environment. Even in a time of crisis.










 

Megan Mack is currently attending ICP-BARD’s MFA program while maintaining her freelance work in photography and video. Originally from Santa Monica, CA, she is now happy to call Brooklyn home. During her high school darkroom photography class, she began to pursue her interest in the photographic medium. Not only was photography a way for her to make sense of the world around her, but it helped her find solace in an already image-saturated world.
After graduating from Art Center College of Design in 2010, Megan focused her energy on portraiture, working mainly on editorial and commercial projects and utilizing her introspective eye and empathetic nature to engage with each subject. Drawn to interesting people, unique places, and sub-cultures, Megan crafts untold stories with a visually distinct narrative.
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