I believe there is something significant, even sacred, about the seemingly mundane things we keep, how we keep them, and the reasons we keep them. I am talking about things that may serve no practical purpose, but to which we feel some emotional attachment. I tend to think that, much of the time, we don’t know why we choose to retain some objects and discard others. Nor do we know why we keep any such objects. Whatever the reasons, I think that through the process of retention, these objects become integral parts of our selves and somehow serve to keep us feeling secure. Moreover, the meanings associated with these objects change over time to the point that the objects themselves seem, in a sense, to disappear.
The subjects that I have chosen are some of my own possessions that, for one reason or another, I have chosen to retain. Stacks of photographs, piles of receipts, picture frames, and bundles of keepsakes are all items that may seem insignificant to an outsider. I have wrapped the keepsakes in translucent packaging that mostly obscures their identity. This packaging represents the layers of meaning that coat a kept object over time. The other objects are stacked in such a way that the viewer knows what kinds of things they are, but cannot see their specific content.
Thus, it is impossible to know why these items are important. As they have been kept, their meanings and identities have shifted beyond recognition.
This is a metaphor for the self.