Park District hosts show to make art out of junk

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Have you visited your local landfill lately? The Environmental Protection Agency documents that Americans generate trash at the amazing rate of 4.6 pounds per day per person, or 251 million tons per year.

That amount of trash would have been unthinkable to a family living in the mid 1800s. To an American pioneer family, nothing was wasted and everything had a purpose, or two, or three. Everything, every item a pioneer family was fortunate enough to acquire, found itself being used, reused and repurposed. Pioneers, by economic necessity, became a generation of true recyclers. Repurposing was a way of life. Pioneer thinking, perhaps spurred on by our current economic climate, is once again being embraced by the American culture.

In this vein, Geauga Park District is proud to present an exciting art show rooted in rethinking, reusing and repurposing. The discARTed recycled art exhibition is a three-month community art show featuring creative works of art transformed from discarded/found materials that will open Nov. 8 in The West Woods Nature Center. "discARTed" Art Exhibition promises to be a treasure-trove of surprising creations and re-uses of the old and discarded. From small pieces of artwork and jewelry to large-scale sculpture, including mobiles and furniture, there will be something for everyone to admire at this exhibition.

You can come and see the artists' work -- and you can become the artist. All throughout the fall months, the park district invites you to join in workshops where you can make your own jewelry and holiday decorations from discarded everyday items. Or, bring the whole family out for the discARTed Family Art Day in December to create make-n-take art projects from recycled materials.

"It is a concept that fits perfectly with the mission of Geauga Park District," said special events coordinator Teresa Runion. "We strive in the park district to link people with the natural world through natural settings, nature programs, and through nature art. By focusing on recycling as an art form in itself, we are providing education and aesthetic enjoyment."

Call it modern life with a pioneer twist. Seeing a new purpose in something old, something we'd normally put out with the trash. Geauga Park District wants to help you take that next step in recycling. We'd like to think the pioneers would approve.

The "discARTed" Exhibition will be open daily through Jan. 31, except major holidays.