Random Notes of Ragpicker Woman is a short documentary that highlights the contrasting views on recycling between my mother and me, providing a personal lens through which to view broader societal issues. Inspired by Walter Benjamin’s “Ragpicker of History,” a figure who sifts through the past to uncover lost meanings and insights, Random Notes examines how culturally specific recycling practices have evolved during different historical periods, such as war, depression, and peace. My mother remembers recycling in Germany during World War 2, for very different reasons than the ones we proclaim to have now. Creating a staged set of my mother and me in paper cut-outs, Random Notes reflects on how recycling can be part of a war effort, a form of protest, an expression of guilt, or a gesture of goodwill. (Video, 1996, 10 mins)