The series entitled, I'm a Piece of Garbage, involves dragging in discarded items from the street and painting self deprecating phrases on them. With these phrases Dirty Bandits touches on deep insecurity and a struggle to maintain a sense of self worth. Starting with items from the trash and using humorous text and sign painting, a very traditional medium, it turns them into art. It is a series about salvage in a literal, art historical and emotional sense. 

 

Gui Machado and Lucas Saugen photographed them on pristine, bright happy backgrounds. The photographs on bright saturated backgrounds helped make these messy and unattractive thoughts clean and friendly.