September 9 – November 1

In Decompositions, Anikó Sáfrán captures the remnants of her family’s food consumption—waste, loss, and compost—by placing organic materials onto photographic paper and exposing them to sunlight, using only the paper’s own emulsion for image development. The resulting colors emerge from chemical reactions between the paper and the materials, which she then scans and digitally enhances to clarify and amplify their hues.

Sáfrán’s work draws attention to the environmental impact of food waste—25% of U.S. landfill content is discarded food, which, when trapped in landfills, decomposes slowly and releases methane, a greenhouse gas 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Alarmingly, half of all fresh produce in the U.S. is wasted before reaching consumers. Through composting and more mindful consumption—like using often-discarded but nutritious beet and turnip greens—we can transform household waste into rich soil and reduce our ecological footprint.

About the Artist:

Anikó Sáfrán’s conceptual art is born from her engagement with the social and natural worlds. An interdisciplinary artist rooted in photography, she uses various media to create 2-D and time-based works and site-specific installations that portray the day-to-day rituals of life: what we love, what we waste, how we succeed, how we get by, how we fail. Her work is motivated by ideas and issues relevant to feminist theory, the environment, and society. As a child of immigrants, Sáfrán’s bi-cultural identity also influences her work.

Sáfrán received an MFA in Interdisciplinary Art from James Madison University. She holds a BFA in Photography and a BA in Film and New Media Arts from the University of Utah. Sáfrán is a VMFA Visual Arts Fellow (2020-21.) Her award-winning work has been exhibited in the United States and abroad, including the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, Richmond International Airport, and Bartok Gallery in Budapest, Hungary.

Learn more about Anikó Safran at anikosafran.com