Ryan Mitchell

“Thank You, For Your Service?” explores memory. Culminating in frustration, anger, and violence which led to emotional withdrawal and physical stress from my service experiences. This series includes 4x6 photographs taken on deployments during my four years in the Marines.

These images are arranged into fragments of dreamlike recollections, a longing for combat, and a yearning for self-worth. The images are created by burning and cutting the images to make collages of distinct recollections. I wanted to be a soldier. I trained for combat and did not get to see it. These recollections are a view of a never-achieved goal: years of combat training and not seeing it. Then, leaving the military and facing the transitional phase of civilian life. These memories now serve as feelings of regret and self-doubt coupled with trying to define a new purpose.

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