The Art of Recycling - Christine Lee

The Artist In Residence Program at SF Recycling & Disposal, Inc. is an innovative program that inspires and educates people about recycling and resource conservation by providing local artists with access to materials, a work space, and other resources at their Solid Waste Transfer and Recycling Center. Since 1990, artists have worked in a large, well-equipped studio next to SF Recycling & Disposal's Transfer Station. The Transfer Station is located within a 44-acre property that includes several recycling facilities and the Public Disposal Area (also known as "the dump"). Art is created from what would have been sent with the rest of San Francisco's trash to landfills across the Bay or recycling plants across the nation.

If you're in San Francisco this weekend and want to learn more about recycled art, check out the exhibit "Linear Elements" of artist in residence, Christine Lee, this Friday, January 23rd (5-9pm) and Saturday, January 24th (1-5pm) at SF Recycling & Disposal (501 Tunnel Avenue). Christine created a body of work that includes a site specific installation, a sculpture that doubles as a public seating area, and a series of three-dimensional works. Using 100% reclaimed wood and concrete, Christine built a modular bench sculpture designed specifically for the back of the art studio, which was recently transformed from a muddy wasteland to a pristine courtyard using recycled concrete. SF Recycling & Disposal reuses concrete returned from job sites for facility improvements and now, for functional art.

Christine explains: "My current investigation lies in the reuse of materials. From sources such as surplus, liquidator and thrift stores, I collect items ranging from fire hoses to sweaters. Mundane, repetitive tasks such as coiling, folding, interlacing, and stacking allow me to develop an understanding and appreciation for a material beyond it's common associations and intended function. Experimenting with multiples of a material allow me to work through a variety of configurations and offer me opportunities for discovery. The resulting objects, forms and installations weave my deep appreciation for the environment with the tactile experience. The sense of repetition, rhythm and refinement applied to the pieces reveal my internal cadence that is meditative but at the same time, concerned by our society's abusive pattern of production and waste."

This art form truly supports the notion that one man's trash is another woman's treasure.