Déjà vu All Over Again, Again
Broken toys, yesterday's newspaper, and china shards may seem like trash to most, but in the hands of professionals, they can be transformed into
beautiful art and fine crafts. In November, twenty-three artists displayed and sold their work at the 6th annual Déjà vu Art and Fine Craft Show in
downtown Columbus, Indiana.Held in honor of America Recycles Day, all the art and fine crafts shown were created using scrap or repurposing items most people throw away. Work included assemblage, mosaics, jewelry, metal sculpture, woodworking, journals, mixed media, furniture, collage, leather goods, and fiber arts.
By holding the show, the event's sponsors hope to demonstrate that art and fine crafts made from reused and/or recycled materials are just as interesting and equal in quality to that made of new materials. In fact, recycled art is becoming collectible, and it's often exhibited in fine galleries and shows across the nation.
Some of this year's more unusual entries were those of Bloomington artists Nick McGill and Susie Seligman. Reusing old machine parts, McGill transforms them into unusual candlesticks, and Seligman turns auction and flea market finds into whimsical chairs and sofas.
Other Bloomington artists included Martina Celerin who showed her spectacular weavings and Cappi Phillips who displayed fanciful mosaics. Popular artist and metal sculptor Glenn Carter returned for his sixth show.
Many who have toured the "Back Roads of Brown County" recognized Chris Gustin's rag rugs, and first time exhibitor Talia Halliday, of Bloomington, displayed handmade journals created from old hardback books.
Also new this year were Nashville mixed media artist Tim Carter-East, wearable arts artist Ann Johnson of Muncie, and Anita Hopper of Indianapolis. Hopper repurposes old leather goods to make stylish clutch purses and handbags. Bloomington artists Mary Hambly displayed intricately designed Paper Art Quilts, and Ruth Rives showed felted purses.
Other new participants included Columbus residents Larry Brackney, who creates assemblage, jeweler Martha Butler, woodturner Bill Griffith, and fiber artist Sophie Callaghan Miller. Also participating was Maggie Dixon of nearby Elizabethtown. She showed jewelry made of vintage buttons.
Some returning artists were Edinburgh jewelry artist Lori Henderson, Columbus' Marilyn Brackney, who showed found art dolls, and the husband/wife team of Mark and Lynne Medsker of Brownsburg. Mark is a metal sculptor, and Lynne uses mixed media to create collages. Also back to display their work were Columbus woodturner Chad Shock and jewelry artist Jill Stillwell.
In addition to the show, our school foundation sponsored a Shred-a-Thon that allowed people to bring documents for safe shredding and disposal. Also, a local school group held a light bulb exchange, which allowed people to trade 60 or 100-watt bulbs for more efficient CFL bulbs. Watch for an upcoming newsletter article that will give you tips on how to stage a similar art show and event in your area.
What's In This Issue
- Happy New Year!
- Deja vu All Over Again, Again
- The Member's Only Trashmatcher
- Leftovers: Trashy Trivia/...Dot...Dot...Dot
- Kids Books with Environmental Themes
- Eco-Artware, an Online Gallery
- The Landfill Project
Fall/Winter 2010
Leftovers
Trashy Trivia
One of the highest points in Ohio is a "mountain" called Mount Rumpke, but the state really has no mountains. Made entirely of garbage and rising to over 1,000 feet, it's located in a landfill operated by the Rumpke Company of Cincinnati. Occupying more than 230 acres, the landfill annually receives two million tons of solid waste. For an interesting video about the landfill, see Journey to Mount Rumpke.
Did you know that everyday, Hershey produces about 80,000,000 chocolate candy kisses, and the amount of aluminum foil used to wrap them equals 50 acres? That's enough to cover almost 40 football fields! While we usually don't give it a thought, the wrappers are recyclable, so the next time you enjoy a Hershey's Kiss, put the wrapper in an aluminum beverage can and recycle both.
...Dot...Dot...Dot
Sometimes you need to make dots
or circles on a piece of work, but painting them is slow going and
difficult. If you look around the house, especially in junk drawers,
you’ll probably find some items that are great for dot making. One
example is a pencil eraser. Also, dowel rod end pieces, wine bottle
corks, and tube and jar lids can be painted or inked and used as
stamps, and they’re great for making impressions in clay, too.
Eco-Artware, an Earth Friendly Company
Since founding Eco-Artware in 1999, Reena Kazmann has showcased earth friendly gifts created by artists who share her vision of becoming a sustainable society. Featuring the work of more than 25 artists, Kazmann’s online store offers a variety of exciting, innovative designs created from used or discarded materials.Artists see the possibilities for creating from just about anything, and that includes trash! In speaking about their abilities, Kazmann notes, “Our artists have a special imagination and talent to identify and use sustainable materials--these supplies are not always easy to find.”
Some have included items such as discarded aluminum road signs that were made into chairs, and keys that were rescued from old typewriters to make cuff links. In fact, Eco-Artware offers everything from kids’ toys and wearable art to home furnishings.
Kazmann, who is personally committed to living sustainably, carries her earth friendly vision throughout her company. In addition to offering merchandise made of used or discarded materials, she sees that orders are packed in a way that’s easy on the environment.
The company’s newsletter, Recycling Rag, is available online, free of charge. In it, Kazmann features eco-friendly designs, artists, and lifestyles. She also writes Eco-Artware Notes, a blog that’s updated twice a week. To learn more about both and to see the artists’ remarkable work, visit Eco-Artware online.http://www.eco-artware.com/index.php
This has been an extremely busy time, so we're combining the fall and winter newsletters and adding some extra material. Happy New Year!
• As you may have noticed, we've updated many of our art/reuse projects with better photos and directions, and we've moved them to the members' side of The Imagination Factory.
• In this issue of The Re-Source, we've included information about Déjà vu, the art and fine craft show that we organize each fall in celebration of America Recycles Day. Held in downtown Columbus, Indiana, this year's event featured 23 professional artists who reuse and/or recycle materials to create their work.
• To help you quickly find uses for scrap or solid waste, we've updated The Member's Only Trash Matcher. Featured below, it includes materials used in the art activities, Discover Hawaii unit, and the mini-lessons featured in previous newsletters. You'll find it on the main site, too.
• We briefly review a dozen or so kids' books with environmental themes. We're pleased to have a full page photo of Trashasaurus Rex and a description of the trashy beast featured in one book, which was published in South Africa.
• Eco-Artware, an online gallery of earth-friendly fine crafts, is featured, and we include photos of some of the outstanding work artists are doing as they help conserve our resources.
• We share an art/reuse idea that may start you thinking about Earth Day, which is in April. While that may seem like a long way off, activities such as The Landfill Project take time to organize, so we offer a mention of it and a photo for inspiration.
• Finally, the Leftovers section features Trashy Trivia, which includes some fun facts about, well, trash! Also, we feature a simple suggestion of how to reuse things most people throw away as art tools. We hope this newsletter is useful and fun to read. Have a great New Year!
Member's Only Web Site Trash Matcher
