transFORMation

Making Art from Recycled and Reused Materials

Traveling throughout Bucks County September 2009 - June 2010

Humble, tossed away materials like broken toys, tin cans, milk cartons, plastic bags, wood scraps and cake boxes can find new life through the artist’s creativity. In transFORMation: Making Art from Recycled and Reused Materials, Artmobile elevates America's cast off trash to museum treasures. This timely exhibition will fuel your students’ imagination as they view wired and welded assemblages, sculptures made from olive oil cans, dolls made of old tools, books made from cake mix boxes, well-used books that have been cut and carved, wall hangings made of junkyard scraps, as well as masks, bird houses, musical instruments and furniture made of found wood and objects.

This exhibit will make connections with all curricular areas – language arts and literacy, math, science, social studies and, of course, the arts. The recycled books on display will link book arts and recycling to literacy. Found-wood sculptures will inspire students’ creativity and highlight principles of architecture and physics.  Functional objects made from recycled materials like purses made of plastic bags will also be displayed. Cultural aspects of recycling will be explored, as well as the differences and similarities between how folk artists and fine artists use these materials. Finally, students will develop a keener understanding of ecology through reusing, reducing and recycling objects as they discover design and meaning in art. transFORMation: Making Art from Recycled and Reused Materials will inform and delight visitors of all ages while providing schools with an enriching opportunity for integrating arts across the curriculum and encouraging recycling throughout the entire school community.

Artmobile’s educational programs are comprehensive.  A professional educator meets each class and engages students in a discussion geared to their grade level.  Hands-on displays reinforce the concepts presented.   In addition, teachers’ manuals are sent to each school prior to our visit to help teachers incorporate the Artmobile experience into their curricula.  They provide background information on the exhibition, pre-visit and post-visit activities for all ages, a glossary, a bibliography and class handouts.  The teacher’s manual is intended both as a tool to enrich and extend the visit, and as a valuable teacher resource for years to come.