One person's junk is another person's…. art?
That's the inspiration of Tohono Chul Park's ongoing "Re-Visions: Art Made from Reclaimed Materials" exhibition.
"People are really delighted and surprised," said Peggy Hazard, the park's assistant exhibit coordinator. "They have to take a double-take."
The show features the works of more than 30 local artists who find their muses in common household items that many people simply toss in the bin.
One of the artists, Joan Davidson, collects those little stickers put on pieces fruit — like the Chiquita banana lady or Gala apple label — and reapplies them on paper or canvas in intricate geometric patterns.
Another of the featured artists, Don Baker, makes his creations in an even less conventional way.
He arranges old metal items on a sheet a canvas — a sewing machine or a collection of vanity license plates — then sprays them with water. The resulting rust transfers to the canvas.
"He's forcing you to reconsider these old items," Hazard said.
The exhibition at Tohono Chul is the fourth in a cycle of shows the park periodically holds. The last was in 2005.
Making art from recycled materials has been growing in popularity for several years. The city of Sante Fe, N.M., holds a juried exhibition annually.
One of Davidson's pieces won accolades at the show last year. A blue ribbon aptly made of recycled materials adorns the piece now at Tohono Chul.
Galleries in numerous other cities also display recycled works — the contemporary environmental movement being one of the driving forces of its popularity — but the predecessor to the modern movement goes back nearly a century.
Marcel Duchamp used the term "readymade" in 1915 to describe one of his pieces, and sculptors have long incorporated discarded objects in their works.
Building on that tradition, many of the works in the Tohono Chul exhibit feature old bicycle parts, Hazard said.
Perhaps one of the most rewarding aspects of the display has been the motivation viewers have taken from the viewings, with their heads filled with ideas of how they too can use their old belongings to make yard art and other home decorations.
"People are actually inspired to do it themselves," Hazard said.
The exhibit runs at Tohono Chul Park through Aug. 23.
Re-Visions: Art Made from Reclaimed Materials
May 21-Aug. 23
9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily.
The Exhibit Hall @ Tohono Chul Park
7366 N Paseo del Norte
Tucson, 85704
No charge
Park admission is $7 adults, $5 seniors and active military $3 children (5-12)
Free to members and children under 5
