Before you throw out those old ties, trying imagining them as a dress. Or that pile of rags as a handbag.
That’s what recycled artist Tina Strafford is calling on people to do with It’s Our Rubbish – an exhibition of wearable art that opens in July.
Tina, who runs the not-for-profit business Revamped Jewellery, was chatting with another artist Mara Requiman from Frank, the Frankston Regional Artisans’ Network, when the concept was born. “She was eating her lunch and she said ‘Look at this; everything’s wrapped in plastic; what if we could challenge the community to create actually useable things that could be worn’.
“It was just a couple of artists sitting together thinking ‘What can we do to excite the community and challenge the community into stop putting that in the bin, and let’s turn it into something we can wear or we can sell’. And people embraced it – we had a launch a couple of Sundays ago and when people saw these dresses made out of ties they were ‘Oh my gosh, can we buy these?’ There were shoes, a handbag made out of rags – all sorts of things. Sometimes you just need someone to show you something outside the square and you go ‘Wow, that’s amazing – I can do that’.”
It’s Our Rubbish Wearable Art Exhibition will be held at Cube 37 from July 10 to August 5, and the community is invited to create and exhibit their own wearable art. “We’re just trying to get the public – crafters, artists, anyone really – to put their thinking caps on and create something out of the rubbish that they find around themselves so it doesn’t end up in landfill … looking at it in a new light, revamping and making useful things out of it that you can sell so we don’t need to put in the rubbish bin.”
Entry is $20 to cover the costs of staging the exhibition, and there are prizes up for grabs. Tina is also keen for sponsors to come on board so even more prizes can be offered. For more details and entry forms, or for sponsorship information, phone Tina on 0407 561 333, email [email protected] or visit www.facebook.com/itsourrubbish