On a treasure hunt like none other, we found several emerging artists creating from elements you likely discard every day. For some, necessity may be the mother of invention, but for others, opportunity is the father of inspiration. One thing they all share in common is their commitment to environmental stewardship. We applaud them for reminding us what can happen when we practice sustainability.

NANCY JUDD – Recycle Runway
“We have the power to change and make decisions that will positively or negatively impact the earth our children and theirs will inherit.”

Education about environmental stewardship is behind Nancy Judd’s line of Recycle Runway apparel made entirely from discarded materials.  Judd can frequently be found combing for garments at thrift stores and dumpster diving for embellishments. Her garments, which take hundreds of hours to assemble, demonstrate that nearly everything we discard can be reused, repurposed and recycled.  Judd hopes her fashions encourage people to think about creative ways to practice sustainability.

Recycle Runway fashion was originally created for a fundraising event at the first annual Santa Fe Recycled Art Festival eleven years ago. Since then, multi-national corporations such as Target® and Coca-Cola® have commissioned gowns and her collections are exhibited in museums nationwide.  Judd frequently visits schools to excite children about protecting the environment.  She is currently working on a “Youth Eco Gown,” which is being assembled using creative objects the children make from recycled materials. What she says to children in her workshops applies to everyone, “It is the result of our moment to moment decisions, in all aspects of life, that has caused environmental concerns we face – and the same to determine whether we can continue to inhabit this planet.”

The Recycle Runway exhibit is on display in Phoenix at Sky Harbor Airport on the second level of Terminal 3, where it will remain through August 8, 2010. For more information visit recyclerunway.com.

 

SANDHI SCHIMMEL-GOLD – Junk Mail Mosaic

“I believe we are an aggregate of tiny bits: who we are and where we’ve been or who we want or pretend to be.  Each piece expresses a mood, a calculated effect of high drama, serenity, sensuality or humor.”

When you see Sandhi Schimmel-Gold’s portraits from a distance, they almost appear to be impressionistic paintings.  Close up, it is hard to believe they are actually scraps-paper mosaic collages.

“When people see my work for the first time, I hear them say, ‘wow.’  Upon closer inspection, they almost always say, ‘wow!’ Then after a moment or two they ask, ‘is that just paper?’ I wonder, is the Mona Lisa just paint?”

Her finished portraits genuinely capture the personalities of her subjects, whose images are modestly infused with a degree of reverence for the environment.
Each typically begins as painting, after which she painstakingly cuts hundreds, even thousands of pieces of junk mail, calendars, magazines into a multitude of shapes and colors and applies them over the painting with uncanny results.

Schimmel-Gold has always been an artist, and is fascinated by mosaics.  She has also always been green. It is no accident that she has merged both. As a child, she was taught to respect the environment, grow her own vegetables and make use of everything without waste.  Today, she continues to live organically, drives a hybrid car and invariably uses non-toxic substances in her work. Astonished with the amount of junk mail she receives daily, she is also obsessed with recycling. She began using it in her work, “As a case of necessity being the mother of invention,” she said.

However, being green is conversely just one aspect of the inspiration behind her art.  She notes, “My heart and soul go into my work.  That recycled paper is my medium is incidental to the fact that what I am creating is fine art that expresses who I am as an artist.”

Sandhi Schimmel-Gold’s work is frequently seen in art shows throughout the Southwest.  Visit schimmelart.com for information about her latest installation in Los Angeles through September.

 

ANN SKYDELL (Ann Made Art) – Jewelry Made of Soda Can Tabs

“I run my business following my credo to be responsible to the earth.  I am happy to be giving back.”

What began as a lesson plan developed for emotionally disturbed teenagers has blossomed into a booming business that does more than just make a profit for Ann Skydell.

“Creative problem solving is essential for these teens’ success in life, and figuring out how to use old things to make beautiful things was perfect,” said Skydell.  When people saw what she was making, they couldn’t help wanting them.  She has since developed a successful enterprise, selling her jewelry in 75 stores throughout the country as “Ann Made Art.”

According to Skydell, success is great, but giving back is worth more. She purchases the reclaimed aluminum soda can tabs from Happy Tabs, a non-profit organization that benefits Ronald McDonald House for Children.  She frequently sells her jewelry wholesale to charities so that they can use them to raise money.  She donates some proceeds to Alliance for Climate Change and Green America each year.  Skydell makes it a point to employ physically or emotionally challenged individuals who would have difficulty finding work elsewhere.

“It’s not harder to do things the way I do them,” she said, acknowledging that her commitment to giving back has paid off immeasurably.  Last year she was awarded the Green America Seal of Approval, which is no small feat considering the organization’s lengthy qualification process.

Ann Made Art jewelry is available locally at Southwest Gardens in Phoenix.  For more information visit annmadeart.com.

 

MEG HARPER – Paintings on Repurposed Corrugated Tin Roof

If necessity is the mother of invention for some artists, opportunity is the father of inspiration for others.

Like many artists, Meg Harper learned to paint on traditional canvases in an academic setting. When canvases were in short supply, she made use of old discarded building scraps from her family’s historical home renovation projects.  She would paint on reclaimed antique cabinet doors, shutters and anything else that provided a smooth painting surface.

Her most recent paintings are composed on pieces cut from an old corrugated tin roof she reclaimed before it could be hauled away to a junkyard.     Raised in a rural mountain setting, Harper derives her whimsical subjects from nature and wildlife. Concerned that as a society we too often become detached from nature, Harper reinforces her attachment by reverentially paying tribute to nature through her paintings.

“Whenever I am out in nature or see a wild animal, it has such a peaceful effect that is such a gift.  That is what I try to convey through my paintings,” she said. Only a few of Harper’s early paintings on canvas remain in her collection.  She anticipates that, by the end of this year, her entire collection will consist of paintings created on reclaimed surfaces.  She is also researching a new material made from reclaimed rubber tires, which can be stretched over frames like traditional painters’ canvases.

Harper acknowledged that she has a responsibility to reduce waste and make a positive impact on the environment, and said,  “Using reclaimed objects as surfaces for my paintings is just one way I can do that.  It gives me joy knowing that I am creating something beautiful out of what would otherwise be discarded.”

Meg Harper is local to Tempe, Arizona.  To locate her paintings, visit megharper.com.

 

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