7. Brady C Material Alchemy

Sand (glorified dirt):

Into really cool sculptures (with a Halloween theme):

Rock (who cares?):

Into Mt. Rushmore (kinda a big deal):

7 - Alisa C - "Lead into gold"

Dried coconut tree leaves

Into (very) practical brooms

And in the context of Halloween, not that pumpkins are really of minimum value or worthless,

they can become brilliant decoration objects!

8 :: Luke Kooper :: Material Alchemy

a pop art project I made last year, "cars and money"

Material is Immaterial : Katherine J.

Lead into Gold- Christine C

Undoubtedly the bible is one of the most influential commodities in the world, however simplified, the book consists only of thin sheets of paper and ink. What makes these objects of low value ( lead, recyclables, wood, letters, plants etc.)  into something valuable, beautiful, and profound are the ideas instilled in them by artists. All of our society-driven concepts of value continue to be challenged by great artists.

Self- Christine

When assigned the self portrait, I had no idea how I could represent myself in one whole piece, while still incorporating the realism I enjoy creating. I decided that an experimentation with colors, emotions, mediums, and a mix of both invisible and visible marks, would be best to represent a static, emotional human being.  The top drawing is graphite, the two below pastel, and the bottom charcoal and pastel on the big sketch pad. 

8::Alexandra Schultz::Value

The obvious one:

Paper ==> Benjamins

Cranberries (food, not the band) ==> Craisins

Silicon ==> computor chipz

7-Lydia Y- this --> that

These are bags made out of various wrappers. I've seen this kind of thing before, but these are especially fancy.

Also, a bag crocheted out of plastic bags.

And a bag made out of bottle caps.

I don't know how I ended up with so many bags as examples.

Exploring this idea of taking something worthless and making it into something more valuable is interesting for me because I was raised to look at things in that way (what could this be made into? what could this be used for?) so there are things that others might consider "worthless" that I would consider valuable for something.

On a different note...

A dress made out of condoms:

Sophia W. What Worthless Material?

Minimum value:

Can be turned into art and something of value:

These are origami sculptures by Eric Joisel, who passed away recently at 53. From afar, these sculptures look like marble or wood, the intricacies to me are amazing.

Kerry M - Turning Nothing into Something

Federico Uribe uses recycled materials to build sculptures of the human form. In the pieces above, he uses computer keyboard keys, clothespins, bullets and jigsaw puzzle pieces, objects of minimal value, to create valuable artwork.

[8] Mary F: Lead into Gold (in terms of wealth and value)

The deserts in Nevada are filled with cacti, soil, and some forms of living creatures. The land itself is not profitable, but why do so many people flock to that location each year?





Because someone decided to build casinos and hotels there, each year, this "desert" not only brings in millions of tourists but also billions of dollars.

[7] Mary F: Self-Portrait (kind of)

For my self-portrait, I did not follow the standard way of drawing my own face looking at a mirror, etc. Rather, I incorporated the basics of eyes, nose and mouth, with an ear and two hands incorporated without the right proportions. What I was trying to convey is the functioning of each body part that contributes to what I enjoy and is a part of me, such as cooking, playing piano, etc.

7- Emily Gilbert: Nothing into Something

Flour and other baking ingredients have minimal value


but can be turned into CUPCAKES! and other delicious treats which are far from worthless

7-Trevor C.: "Lead into Gold"

Minimal Value: Green Tea

Substantial Value: Clothes!

"Is it possible to 'grow a frock from a vat of liquid' using cellulose-spinning bacteria? This is exactly what fashion designer Suzanna Lee asked before she began BioCouture, a research project based at Central Saint Martin's College in London. From a vat of sugary green tea, she grew a textile biomaterial, resulting in seamless clothing that has the look and feel of vegetable leather."

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/07/from-a-vat-of-green-tea-grows-gross-but-cool-green-fashion-called-biocouture-photos.php

six :: isabella giancarlo :: turning nothing into something (!!)

worthless (minimal value) :: steel chains

something of substantial value :: jim hodges, spiderwebs made of chains!

worthless (minimal value) :: wire hangers

something of substantial value :: david mach, silverback gorilla made of hangers

The Grand Anything [fotos]

Here are some of the pictures I took during the grand anything:

ART:

That was a great experience. Thanks guys! -Lydia