Marlborough Art Society exhibits upcycling work
Carolyn Costley holds her childhood boot depicted in “Oklahoma Childhood” for which she used Tetra Pak in the printmaking. Photo: Evan Tuchinsky.
When something works, why not reuse it? That is both the meta and the message of Marlborough Art Society’s exhibition underway at its Blenheim gallery.
“Recycle, Reinvent, Repurpose” brackets Earth Day – it previewed on 10 April and continues through 26 April. For the show, Marlburian artists created pieces from, or with, items which had previous lives. These works reflect what Carolyn Crosley, the organisation’s president, calls “a trash to treasure mindset”.
Members first rolled out the exhibition two years earlier. Anne Barrer, an artist on the leadership committee, recalled how “people were excited about it” and deemed this juncture “the time to do it again”.
Carolyn repurposed Tetra Pak for printmaking. Anne upcycled nikau pods into large, brightly painted masks. Anne’s husband, Rob, sculpted with driftwood, wax and other materials. Nina Russell assembled aluminium tabs in metallic mesh creations. Tamara Jansen and Tess Landon-Lane refreshed garments.
Purposeful cycles
“Let’s talk rubbish!” Carolyn said in introducing the show to two-dozen attendees at the preview.
Marlburians set out twice the trash of the national average: some 5,500 tonnes in total a year – 15 tonnes a day. Instead of sending so much to the landfill, why not “support a circular economy” by reimagining objects’ potential, she proposed.
“This exhibition is about upcycling in its various terms,” Carolyn said, then proceeded with definitions. Recycling transmutes raw materials; reuse keeps the item as-is; repurposing finds new uses; upcycling enhances it.
“There’s a lot to this,” Carolyn concluded, as evidenced by the works of art in the gallery.
“Recycle, Reinvent, Repurpose”
What: Marlborough Art Society exhibition
Where: 204 High Street, Blenheim
When: Now through 26 April, 10:30am-3:30pm
Details: marlboroughartsociety.co.nz