ART FROM TRASH
Established in 1993, the ART FROM TRASH exhibition is the first and
longest running exhibition of its kind and an iconic and much loved exposé
of creativity. Attracting over 120 artists and 5000 visitors annually, this
event has proved itself as a powerful and much needed change agent for
a better future.
ENTRIES CLOSE 2 MAY 2016
Makers of all ages, styles and stages, from emerging talent to established practitioners, schools
and community groups exhibit alongside each other in an exhibition of increasingly accomplished
and thought-provoking works of art.
SOMETHING NEW FOR 2016
TRASHION is the new sidekick of the Art From Trash Exhibition and an antidote to the ‘take,
make, consume, dispose’ pattern synonymous with the fashion industry. TRASHION wants to
inspire a new way of thinking based on the assumption that resources will not always be
abundant, available, easy to source and cheap to dispose of. Fashion, perhaps more than any
other industry in the world, embraces obsolescence as a primary goal. TRASHION is the cure.
TRASHION is not a competition it is a celebration of creativity.
In keeping with the continuing surge in popularity of bespoke clothing and the up-cycling of
second hand wares, TRASHION is a fashion parade gala event inspired by the international
success of World of Wearable Art in New Zealand and will work with designers, artists, students
and fashion slaves to showcase and inspire outfits both extreme, wild and wacky but also
sustainable clothing ranges and accessories to promote recycling.
The popularity and broad appeal of ART FROM TRASH continues to grow and we once again
look to expand the event to keep our artists and audiences free of limitations. With our new
addition TRASHION the Resource Work Cooperative has a big year ahead with big plans for
community engagement.
OPENING NIGHT
We invite you to share the word of our success and champion these local initiatives
of global significance. May 20 from 6.30pm all are invited to admire great works of art
made by discarded and rejected materials.
All information on entries for ART FROM TRASH and TRASHION are
available from the resource website
www.recource.coop
Re-use Arts
In modern western culture, the things we regard as waste are the abject – abhorrent, intolerable,
and quickly hidden from our view by the dissociative processes of disposal, collection and
landfilling. Although they were once things of use, purpose, subjectivity and meaning, our current
approach to waste means they are largely destined to be cast out of the cultural world forever.
Nevertheless, the material reality of these objects remains. Buried, forgotten, and largely unseen,
they cause untold pollution and disruption to ecological processes.
Re-use art presents us not with a horrific dystopian vision of this situation, but with an articulation
of alternative possibilities and a celebration of the transformation of wasted things into works of
cultural significance. A globally significant phenomenon, re-use art encompasses practitioners
and projects such as the Mutoid Waste Company, the Museum of Contemporary Rubbish, the
Junkyard Museum of Awkward Things, the Narrating Waste project and the Significant Objects
project, to name but a few.
Resource Work Cooperative’s Art From Trash exhibition is a proud part of this significant body of
arts practice, and approaches the subject with a community focus that situates the exhibition,
and the works created therein, firmly in the social and cultural context of Tasmania.
Resource Work Cooperative
Resource Work Cooperative is a non-profit Worker’s Cooperative, established in 1993 with the
goals of reducing waste, creating sustainable employment, and promoting waste minimisation in
the community through creative and engaging educational projects. We operate the South Hobart
Tip Shop, the Deconstruction service, the Community Pick-Up Service, and the annual Art From
Trash exhibition. We also hold stalls, workshops, and community tours of our operations all year
round. We have been recognised for our achievements with numerous awards over the years,
including the Dr Edward Hall Environment Award, The Small Business Sustainability Award, and
the Minister’s Choice Award in the Tasmanian Awards for Environmental Excellence.
Lucinda Toynbee Wilson
