Victoria artist Beverly Hancock used to paint a painting and be done. But now, she cuts it up. And then, she weaves it into something new.
Karen Guilbault gathers pine needles 乌鸦传媒� sometimes she乌鸦传媒檒l even politely ask city removal not to rake over a spot. She then patiently bundles and weaves them into intricate baskets.
Award-winning fibre artist Martina Edmondson now makes whimsical creations out of nature foragings.
These women are all established artists riding the waves of a rising tide: the growing trend of repurposed art. Essentially, it乌鸦传媒檚 using found or existing objects to create something entirely new.
乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 a huge trend in the world, but the biggest trend is to use garbage and reuse things that we don乌鸦传媒檛 think are beautiful,乌鸦传媒� Hancock said. 乌鸦传媒淎nd to try to make something that no one乌鸦传媒檚 ever seen before out of something you would usually throw out.乌鸦传媒�
In February, another 乌鸦传媒榬epurposed乌鸦传媒� artist from Victoria, driftwood sculptor Tanya Bub, was at an international exposition of repurposed art in Qatar called the Tadweer Art Exhibition. The exhibit merged the worlds of art and environmental consciousness, stated to be a testament to Qatar乌鸦传媒檚 commitment to sustainability.
For artists who approach art through this lens, the draw lies in reconnecting with the natural world while relinquishing control and embracing spontaneity.
乌鸦传媒淚 start with something that I find really interesting,乌鸦传媒� Edmondson said of her diverse pieces, which include collage, sculpture and eco printing (using natural materials to dye paper with earthy tones and create imprints). 乌鸦传媒淚 might think, oh, maybe this looks a little bit like a face or this could be an eagle. And then my imagination takes a flight.乌鸦传媒�
She also does embroidery, but, 乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 not pretty embroidery. I guess I don乌鸦传媒檛 do pretty very well. Or, I don乌鸦传媒檛 find it pretty.乌鸦传媒�
Pretty isn乌鸦传媒檛 the point when approaching art in this manner. 乌鸦传媒淵ou乌鸦传媒檙e making it for yourself. And I think that comes with age,乌鸦传媒� Edmondson said.
Hancock, an expressionist and figurative artist who finds it 乌鸦传媒渆xhilarating乌鸦传媒� to rip up and re-imagine her paintings into new works, agreed this is a new era of art-making for her. 乌鸦传媒淚t is really interesting to see how artists乌鸦传媒� work changes as their situation in life changes.乌鸦传媒�
A growing eco-consciousness in the arts community
While repurposed art has always been around, all three artists said they乌鸦传媒檝e seen it growing in popularity, all part of a growing eco-consciousness.
乌鸦传媒淚 think with the way climate change is going, there will be more and more emphasis on, what are we using? What are we doing to the environment?乌鸦传媒� Edmondson said.
乌鸦传媒淚乌鸦传媒檓 not saying everybody乌鸦传媒檚 there, but, you know, I have a big following online. It乌鸦传媒檚 a very big topic,乌鸦传媒� Hancock said.
乌鸦传媒淢any, many artists would say, 乌鸦传媒楾here乌鸦传媒檚 no paper towel in my studio. I乌鸦传媒檓 using rags.乌鸦传媒� So if you can乌鸦传媒檛 do everything, you乌鸦传媒檙e trying to do something, right? And I think every artist is sharing that information with each other.乌鸦传媒�
Guilbault primarily uses pine needles to create her baskets. But she also paints stones to feature in the centre of these baskets, and once she乌鸦传媒檚 done painting, she wipes her palette so the paint doesn乌鸦传媒檛 go down the drain.
乌鸦传媒淵ou see how we are all thinking about it,乌鸦传媒� Hancock said. 乌鸦传媒淲hen I went to art school, what a squiggle of time ago, in the 1970s, nobody talked about that. There wasn乌鸦传媒檛 a single person in the art world that had ever even discussed, what do we do with this paint? Is it bad for the world?乌鸦传媒�
Experience repurposed art
While the artists just wrapped up a group exhibit at Gage Gallery in March, Beverly Hancock will be exhibiting at Gage again April 2-14 with RAW: Unveiled Layers, which delves into the raw experiences that shape the human condition.
If you are interested in this type of artwork you can also check out art by Gerhard B盲r, Martha Haversham, Michelle Reader, Wim Delvoye and Yuken Teruya.
But Hancock, Guilbault and Edmondson would probably also encourage you to try it out for yourself.
乌鸦传媒淚t is magical. After you get going, you go, 乌鸦传媒業 could have never thought of that乌鸦传媒�,乌鸦传媒� Hancock said.
