CANLOVE: Upcycled Spray Paint Can Art

Love is in the air on this Valentine’s Day, but Los Angeles-based artists DJ Neff and Paul Ramirez promote a different kind of love. Started in 2011, this collaboration has blossomed into a full-fledged non-profit organization, CANLOVE, whose mission is to upcycle otherwise discarded or abandoned spray paint cans. Over the years, they have saved…

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Color-Coded Chaos

On this Earth Day, we thought it appropriate to feature work that promotes that trendy buzz word: upcycling. In other words, reusing objects that would otherwise be discarded in such a way as to create something of higher quality or value than the original. In this case, it’s the inventive work of UK photographer Dan…

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100 Hoopties by Jenny Beatty

Serial projects, that is, ones that are repeated at daily intervals for a set period of time, are really an exemplification of self discipline and ferocious creativity. One such example is a project called 100 Hoopties by Detroit-bred, Los Angeles-based designer and cyclist Jenny Beatty. While completing a masters program at SVA in NYC, Beatty…

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Taking a Walk with Mitch Goldstein

In keeping with our (hopefully) weeklong theme of Create Upstate 2015 (other posts here and here), we turn the spotlight on fellow Rochester-based designer (and educator/writer) Mitch Goldstein. Those behind the planning of Create Upstate clearly made a deliberate decision to have Goldstein kick off the main event. Goldstein is the perfect blend of adept designer…

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One Man’s Trash is Tom Deininger’s Treasure

Trash versus treasure is all relative, as everyone pretty much knows by now. Rhode Island-based artist Tom Deininger takes the old adage to heart through his remarkable collage work. From idealistic landscapes (one of which is inspired by Impressionist master Monet), to detailed portraiture, to denim seascapes, to large-scale commissions, Deininger truly transforms found, often…

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From Trash to Treasure

The old adage “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” is taken to the hilt by Portuguese street artist Artur Bordalo (aka Bordalo II). Bordalo is a master of mixed media, and his work not only repurposes/recycles “garbage”, but also transforms urban landscapes in really intriguing ways. Bordalo sees the world through a different lens,…

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Bottle Cap Art by Mary Ellen Croteau

Chicago-based artist (and self-described “agitator”) Mary Ellen Croteau has a body of work that spans over two decades. Her work has always challenged the ridiculousness of social norms, and her latest, constructed of non-recycled plastic waste, is no different. Influenced by Chuck Close, Croteau arranges thousands of bottle caps in their original color and size…

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Crafty Cassettes

Paris-based artist Benoit Jammes finally found a use for all those old audio cassette tapes he had lying around. Inspired by 1980s nostalgia, Jammes resurrected the tapes and gave them new life. Some are pop culture references, others are simply fun. Via benoitjammes.com

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