With Earth Day coming up, the Pitt Meadows Art Gallery opened a new exhibit on Saturday featuring impressive works of art created from stuff we throw away.
The Art of Upcycling features both talented local amateurs and celebrated artists from elsewhere.
“Everyday objects discarded as waste are re-imagined into remarkable works of contemporary art and sculpture in The Art of Upcycling at the Pitt Meadows Art Gallery,” said the promo.
“This year’s exhibit hopes to raise awareness about excess plastic waste that ends up in the oceans.”
Pitt Meadows artist Betty Walraven, who has been creating art all her life, turns plastic bottles into spike mobiles that hung from the ceiling at the gallery. She cuts the bottles into strips and heats them into colourful stars.
“This is wonderful,” she said of the show. “I’m so impressed with the creativity,” she said.
Maple Ridge artist Joseph Karasz was also proud to have his wide range of artwork in the show, saying there is a lot of high level artistry on display.
The retired steel fabricator had bonsai trees made from copper, and birds from discarded plastic pvc pipe.
Susann Sigmund, city arts and cultural services coordinator, noted that the second annual upcycling exhibit had grown from eight artists in its first year to 16 now in its second.
Pieces include a 2D map sewn together with recycled plastics and fabrics, jewellery hand-crafted from reclaimed plastics along the Pacific Rim shores and playful sculptures created from a variety of upcycled materials.
The show will be on display at the Harris Road art gallery until May 26.
ncorbett@mapleridgenews.com
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