Article - Artweek
Article - Guardian
The artist in residency program at San Francisco Recycling and Disposal
might be the most sustained attempt ever to mine the waste stream for
its creative properties. Founded in 1990 by Norcal Waste Management,
this only-in-San Francisco program offers artists a studio at the dump,
a small stipend and 24-hour access to all the junk they can find. Fifty
two artists have participated so far including William Wareham, Susan
Steinman, and Dee Hibbert Jones. The range of strategies employed by
the artists is matched only by the dizzying variety of material: flat
tires, antique tools, Star Wars dolls, Victorian chair legs, discarded
bank books. The cast off objects become newly empowered, often with a
strong political voice and they are admired as much by recycling
advocates as by art collectors. The title of the show comes from a work
by Mike Farruggia, the residency's most recent graduate. It is based on
his encounter with senior citizens in Buenos Aires who formed a club
devoted to extending their longevity. Here it signifies the alchemical
ressurection of unwanted things from their garbage-mound necropolis
back to a life of relevance and beauty.
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