(Hamilton, OH) – The adage holds true.
The Environmentally Conscious exhibition on display through December 6 in the Community Gallery at the Fitton Center for Creative Arts demonstrates how one person’s trash becomes another person’s treasure.
Each piece on display came out of found-object art workshops conducted by the Hamilton Lane Library on Saturday afternoons.
“These young artists have demonstrated their ability to think outside the box by transforming trash and second-hand materials into compelling works of art,” said exhibition curator Brian Vogt, a Miami University student and artist who taught the workshops with Jeff Baker. “Their work demonstrates that the labels ‘art’ and ‘trash’ are fluid social categories that are not exclusive.”
Nearly two dozen young artists – ranging in age from 8 to 18 – attended the workshops and contributed to the exhibition. Pieces range from snack-chip wrappers mounted on a frame of painted plyboard to a 3-D aquarium scene created in an erstwhile glass coffee jar, from pictures painted on pizza boxes to a snare drum made from a coffee can.
Artists transformed found items including bricks, surgical gloves, egg cartons, mylar balloons, feathers, buttons, drinking straws, pie tins and tissue boxes, along with a variety of discarded paper products.
“Although the artists are young, the pieces they have created exhibit a mastery of artistic craft that is comparable to more experienced artists,” Vogt said.
Vogt expressed gratitude for the workshops and exhibitions.
"Thank you to the Western Program at Miami University and the Western Center for Social Impact and Innovation for supporting this exhibit," he said. "Also thank you to Dr. Jacqueline Daughtery and Billy Simms for helping to develop the workshops at the Hamilton Lane Library."
The Fitton Center and Hamilton Lane Library co-host a closing-night reception for the exhibition from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, December 6, in conjunction with the Fitton Family Fridays performance by The Sunburners Party Band – Calypso Christmas.
The closing reception is FREE and open to the public, as are all Fitton Center galleries. Tickets to Calypso Christmas are $8 for Fitton Center members, $10 for non-members, and are available online right here, by phone at 513-863-8873, ext. 110, or in person at the Fitton Center box office.
While Environmentally Conscious is on view in the Community Gallery, the 2024 FotoFocus Biennial exhibition We > Me: 17 Artists Explore Hamilton Neighborhoods fills the remaining gallery spaces through January 3, 2025.
Guided tours are available by request and can be arranged at a mutually agreeable time by contacting Director of Exhibitions Cathy Mayhugh at cathy@fittoncenter.org or by phone at 513-863-8873, ext. 122. To have your group’s artwork considered for an exhibition in the Community Gallery, please visit the Fitton Center website right here.
The Fitton Center for Creative Arts is located at 101 S. Monument Avenue on the Riverfront in downtown Hamilton, Ohio.
Building Community Excellence through the Arts and Culture
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