Artist collected trash outside Taylor Swift's wedding and put a $25 tag on it. He sold out in minutes
Justin Gignac's 'trash' project turned from a joke into artwork outside the biggest celebrity wedding of 2026
The saying "one man's trash is another man's treasure" couldn't be truer for NYC artist Justin Gignac (@justingignac). Gignac, the founder of the NYC Garbage project, got all suited up on July 3 to pick up trash outside Madison Square Garden after Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding, reported Hyperallergic. The project began in 2001, and he has since released several editions. The 50 small boxes of trash from the T&T wedding, sold at $25 each, are now sold out. Gignac shared the video on July 8, and it received 92,200 views.
T&T Wedding souvenir
To Gignac's surprise, "It wasn’t as dirty as I was expecting," he told the news outlet. "I found a lot of bottle caps, cigarette butts, and one left AirPod on the crosswalk — that was a first, even though those are probably the easiest things to lose." The limited edition T&T wedding had "NYC Pocket Garbage" written on the transparent boxes, along with the singer's wedding date.
How NYC Garbage started
The project began as a college internship in 2001 when a coworker claimed that packaging design does not matter, and Gignac was ready to prove them wrong. He began with just 10 cubes and sold the first one for $5 in Times Square. Since then, Gignac's 'joke' turned into a collectible, and then into an artwork. Over the years, he has sold 1,700 cubes to locals, tourists, and even people abroad who wanted a piece of NYC.
He had collected trash on important dates in history, including Barack Obama's first presidential inauguration, the 2009 World Series, and the day gay marriage was legalized in NYC. He also sold a 25th anniversary edition of the first time he sold a cube.
T-Swift fans would pay a fortune to attend her wedding
Taylor Swift has millions of fans across generations. According to a recent survey, 8% of Millennials reported they would pay more than $10,000 to attend their wedding, as per Inc. Since wedding invites were not handed to any random guests, people settled on a souvenir from the event, even though it was just literal trash. That was where Gignac's $25 NYC Pocket Trash comes in.
A study by Cafe Casino also revealed that 41% of U.S. millennials would shift their wedding date if it were on the same day as Swift's, but only 37% of Gen Z would do the same. Brian Donovan, a sociology professor at the University of Kansas, also known as the "Swiftie Sociologist," said, "I wouldn’t be surprised if, in subsequent years, couples select that date because of its quasi-sacred quality."
'Vibes of 2026 summer'
People in the comments were extremely impressed with Gignac's venture. However, some were worried about whether it was safe for his health to collect trash. @dpatrone commented, "Love this!! An NYC garbage cube collection from the Knicks Parade, the World Cup Final, and the Taylor Swift wedding would really encapsulate the immaculate vibes of the summer of 2026." @hairbyfusionptbo wrote, "I really love people’s entrepreneurial creativity."
You can follow Justin Gignac (@justingignac) and NYC Garbage (@newyorkcitygarbage) on Instagram for more trash and art-related content.
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