In a consumer-driven world we accumulate objects every day, but if you could pack only one suitcase with personal belongings what items would you carry with you for a lifetime?
Carried Memories: A Journey Through Objects is a series of photographs with a personal narrative exploring the relationship between the memories and emotions we attach to certain objects. 

Contents:

1. Unpack

2. Chapters unfolding

3. Est 1996

4. Teenage Dream

5. I.O.U the rest of my life

6. Personal effects being forwarded

7. Light of reflection

8. Closure

Experiencing moving from the UK to Australia during a global pandemic and having a short amount of time to pack 25 years’ worth of belongings in one suitcase, changed my appreciation for and connection to my personal items. I realised how many memories and emotions one object could hold. Photographing the objects I left behind helped me cope with the loss of not physically seeing them again. Inspired by this and my feelings of sentiment and reflection led me to create this series with the aim to evoke a similar emotional response in the audience who see my work. The suitcase plays an important role in my images and story symbolising the journey myself and my belongings have been on and the emotional weight of those items. The objects displayed in the photos represent important memories and times in my life. A childhood diary, keepsakes from my wedding day, the denim jacket I wore to my first concert are just some of the items I chose to pack in my suitcase. I was influenced by the aesthetics and history of the still life genre in my decision-making process. I incorporated flowers and decorative butterflies to help link my contemporary compositions with the traditional techniques of the Dutch Masters and to represent growth and transformation. As well as a technical approach of physical and digital layering to create a nostalgic, whimsical effect inspired by the works of Photographer Petra Collins.