By: Morgan York
Seton Harvest recently had their 2nd annual “Art on the Farm” event on Saturday, August 19th. The theme for this year’s event was “One Person’s Trash,” which focused on the repurposing of old, worn out items.
The showing is to remind the public about the infamous saying “reuse, reduce, and recycle.” So many items in the world today are used once and trashed. This event showed people different items they may have laying around their house that could be turned into something special.
Seton Harvest had several artists come to show their work, as well as a viewing of a short film.
Meet The Artists
Bonnie Zimmer, one of the artists showing her work at the event, started repurposing “junk” into art in 1970 for Earth Day. She is inspired by art from Native Americans and Sub-Saharan Africans. Bonnie says, “I have always been an artist and maker of many things…” The type of materials used in her artwork vary from woven textiles to reclaimed materials.
Kevin Titzer, a USI alum, also showed his work at the event. Titzer has had his work shown all over the United States as well as five other countries; Canada, Thailand, Norway, Japan, and the U.K. His artwork is made up of wood, metal, and varying debris.
Dawn Murtaugh is an exhibiting artist who works on recycled textiles. A lot of the materials she uses are transformed into quilted art with beautiful scenery. Her bio on social media says, “I transform salvaged textiles into art inspiring others to reclaim our planet.”
Project of Kevin Titzer
The short film “Sack Race with Knives,” filmed by Jordan Barclay and produced by BarClay Productions, is a documentary on the adventure of Kevin Titzer’s recent art installation. This documentary shows Titzer gathering materials and assembling his art installation.
How You Can Join in on The Artistic Fun
If you are inspired by or were unable to attend this event, try these crafts listed below! How can you take random items around the house and turn it into something beautiful? The answer is upcycling.
Upcycling
Upcycling is the opportunity to turn waste into new products with higher value; either artistically or environmentally. Just because a product is worn down, doesn’t mean it can’t still be used. Maybe it can’t do what it was made to do, but that’s where the fun part comes in!
One idea that you could make is a tote bag. This tote bag can be made by crocheting together plastic bags you get from the grocery store. This tote bag is able to carry more weight without breaking, and is more reusable than the original bags. Maybe, after making your own tote bag, you can carry the produce you got from our farm in it. If you are interested in this project check out this page for instructions!
Another idea you could do is make plastic containers into sunglass cases. These plastic containers would be thrown hopefully into recycling, but more times than not go straight to the landfill. Now, you can do something with them! Watch this video for instructions.
Turn this….
Into this….
These sunglass covers can help protect your glasses from soil or rocks while you’re planting your own garden.
It is so important to be creative in life, so why not do it with things that you would normally throw away. There is no extra money spent in the material and you are helping the Earth! Now that you have a couple options and artists to look at for inspiration, it is time to bring “Art on the Farm” to your house!
This event was made possible with help from many Evansville sponsors and volunteers! Sponsors included; New Horizons Financial Consultants, Circular Venture Lab, Happy Tails Resale Shop, Sixth and Zero, Posey County (IN) Solid Waste District, and Salvage Candy. For more information on Seton Harvest’s upcoming events visit our website, Instagram, (@setonharvest) and Facebook (Seton Harvest).