ECO ART
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The “Art” of Recycling
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David Bondt
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Texas Tech University
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The “Art” of Recycling
Americans
represent 5% of the world’s population, but generate 30% of the world’s
For
me, this percentage is staggering and represents just another layer of deeper
understanding of our waste crisis in the U.S. As I began reading the survey
questions in Weintarub's (2012) book, To Life!: Eco Art in Pursuit of a Sustainable Planet (p. 321) , my awareness was heightened as my own personal
waste footprint emerged. I felt so conflicted and saddened about the situation
that my first reaction was apathy. In reflection, I realize that it is a normal
response to feeling overwhelmed and powerless over such a difficult realization
of our planet’s terrible condition and my own contribution to its demise. So, I
began brainstorming: What can I do with the waste I create? Can this waste be
recycled into my art? As I explored these questions different ideas emerged.
I first began with the necessary
research to find out what was available within our own community on recycling. I
found on the internet that our main recycling center is on 84th and
P along with three other smaller facilities in different areas around town. I then
called and made arrangements for a tour and the center was very friendly and
receptive. At the center I was able to observe several blue bins that were organized
for different recyclables such as paper, plastic, card board and used oil etc.
The manager of the recycling center, Mr. Rainwater (cool name!), explained that
the materials are sorted and then delivered to different plants to be converted
into reusable products. A few examples of this are most plastics are delivered to
Jarvis metals to become recycled t-shirts and the aluminum goes through a 60
day process and are back on the grocery shelf for different products such as
soft drinks. I also became very interested in this next step of recycling and
will soon contact Jarvis Metals to see if I can view this process first hand.
The next question to tackle on my
list was how I can use some of my own household waste to create art. I googled
and found many artists who are concerned with a lot of the same things I am and
share the importance of recycling and the creative use of it in their art. The
one that I found to be most like minded in relation to using home and found
materials in art making was Michelle Reader. The materials she collects are discovered
in a variety of environments and form a “diary” of our own waste cycle. She
explains that: “the materials not only highlight a need to address the amount
of waste each of us produces, but also tells the story of each individual through
the things they discard” such as “a child’s drawings, a shopping list, and a
birthday card.”( Reader, n.d.). I admire her because she try’s “wherever
possible to use materials that are reclaimed” and use “things with a history
that have been discarded and might otherwise end up in landfill.” (Reader,
n.d.) I can see how her sculptures are compelling in the way her subjects are
able to view first hand their own personal waste footprint within a certain
time frame of their lives. This thought process gave me hope on how to approach
my own personal “waste cycle” through humor and innovation. Viewing her art also gave me a starting point
for my own art making and how to use recyclables.
Recently, I have begun to use things
found around my home to create a fish sculpture with bamboo, a bike tire, old
fencing wire and a burned out dryer heating element. I am not certain what
other recyclables I will use however; I will begin with my own “trash” so to
speak and see what happens. For me, creating a sculpture is a new experience and
I am looking forward to journeying through this process in more ways than one.
Like our lives we never know exactly what lies ahead or what tomorrow may bring,
similarly my art reflects this unique passage through the usage of recyclables.
I find the process of discovery and its unpredictability exciting to my inventive
nature.
References
Reader, M. Artist statement. Retrieved from
Winetraub, L. (Ed.). (2012). To life!: Eco art in pursuit of a sustainable planet. Berkeley, CA:
University of California Press.
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