Initially I am interested in artists who specifically use found objects. I am very drawn to works which use multiples of objects, many of the same or similar objects. I really like the work of these artists because of the pieces they create using very mundane, everyday things. Its the sheer mass and composition of these objects that interests me. Some of these artists are creating works from found objects which visually represent things in the real world. This interests me, simply because it made the objects recognisable but now I am finding myself drawn to the more abstract pieces where the use of objects is more exciting than the visual image created.
Zac Freeman uses buttons, jar lids, legos and every kind of small found objects imaginable to create his strikingly realistic images and portraits. Obviously the skill used in creating this image is amazing but for me I love his use of colour and the beautiful painterly palette. Obviously objects were selected which a strong emphasis on tonal qualities.
“I glue the bits of junk to a wooden substrate to form an image, usually faces, which only can be seen at a distance. I was interested in communicating through visual representation in apparent 2-dimensional space and through the actual objects used for the medium in 3-dimensional space. It is very important to me that I incorporate the actual objects into the art as opposed to a picture or rendition of it because it better expresses the intention of the artwork. I feel the junk is more powerful being present. It is an actual thing to be reckoned with that existed in this time and place and carries energy in and of itself.”
Zac Freeman
Piano keys, bits of broken plates and various other waste materials go through a transformation of their own to become the beautiful large-scale butterfly sculptures of Michelle Stitzlein. This artist also works heavily with the community and young people and there are several examples of her works and work inspired by her available online.
Michelle Stitzlein.
Stacks of flip-flops, plastic soda bottles, styrofoam packaging, buoys and other waste items become “contemporary environmental art totemic sculptures” by artist John Dahlsen. The Australian artist actually gathers these discarded items from beaches, dividing them up by colour into surprisingly beautiful sculptures that speak both of the power of consumerism in our society, and the plummeting value of these materials in such a short period of time. I really love the stacking method he has incorporated because it presents these objects in a completely uniform way regardless of what they are. The flip flops, styrofoams and plastic bottles are presented the same way regardless of what they are.
John Dahlsen's "stacks"
I really like the environmental awarenesses in his work. He is both recycling or "upcycling" objects which are regarded as trash/rubbish and creates really beautiful, simply constructed but visually complex sculptures.
The composition of lots of objects does not always have to be small scale.A dilapidated 10-story building in Seoul, South Korea received a colorful new look in the form of 1,000 brightly colored reclaimed doors in an installation by artist Choi Jeong-Hwa.
Choi Jeong-Hwa
Stand-alone keyboards are nearly obsolete as most of us begin ditching desktop computers for laptops and tablets, meaning most of those plastic keys end up in landfills. But artist Sarah Frost collects these keys and uses them to create wall art with a pixelated look, the keys nearly unidentifiable when viewed from afar.
Sarah Frost
Artist Joe Pogan welds a basic frame for his sculptures and then finished his constructions using a variety of found objects such as old watches, nails, nuts and bolts. I find this interesting because of the organic forms he creates using mechanic, man made objects. The way he bends and manipulates the objects and uses them to create sculptures based on realistic, natural objects, such as this bird and nest is an interesting contradiction of image and object.
Joe Pogan
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