During COVID lockdowns, Allison Thompson saw the amount of trash her family was producing and figured there had to be something to do with it, other than tossing it in the bin.
Thompson, a collage artist, grabbed what she could out of the garbage – looking for anything with a unique texture, colour, or shape – and got to work. At the Art Gallery of Burlington, she is teaching others how to do the same.
“My husband’s office moved home and my studio disappeared, I was working out of a suitcase on my desk,” Thompson said. ‘’I had little time and little space, and had little children. It’d be manically working to make supper, wondering if I could glue a bunch of scraps together and start working.”
On Thursday afternoon, a studio in the AGB was full of useful garbage being turned into tiny works of art all centered around empty tea boxes to create dioramas as part of the Upcycled Life Scraps Diorama Workshop.
It is the latest in a series of workshops from the gallery getting visitors to rethink how used materials can be put to use.
“Everyone is taking their own approach to it, we’re encouraging them to re-connect with the things they would otherwise throw out,” Stephanie Vegh, head of learning at the AGB said.
Though the tea box acted as the vessel, there were no consistencies in theme or mood. Artists crafted flowers on a mountain top and replicated small Parisian apartments. They took inspiration from park benches and boutique eateries.
“The tea box is a really great container for artwork, and something most people have on hand,” Vegh said.
Just as varied as the works of art were the types of items brought in by artists.
“I was enraptured by this little cheese container, and thought it had to have something both on the inside and the outside,” Debra Rowland, one of the participating artists said. “I made it into a little floral cake, which is the exact opposite of what I was thinking of when I came in.”
Rowland’s original idea was a garden, but the double layer cake was too tempting to not build.
The AGB is running a few workshops on reclaimed materials, with the next scheduled for March 8 at 1 p.m., using reclaimed clay.
“We’ll take clay that’s been left over from other people’s projects and reconstitute it into workable clay for new projects,” Sue Alksnis, community engagement volunteer and fundraising manager at Burlington Green said. “It’s such a perfect shape.”
Artists of all experience levels are welcome to join at the AGB’s workshops. Rowland has been to a handful of workshops in Burlington and other galleries, adding that anyone interested in getting crafty needs only to show up.
“It’s free, just do it and engage your creativity,” Rowland said.