The artists featured in SALVAGE STORIES · Seven Sculptors transform the mundane trash of contemporary society into sculpture that ranges from emotional resonance to historical allusion, grounded earthiness, and musical innuendo. Though their decision to repurpose discarded detritus connects to the environmental movements of our time, more significantly, these seven artists have chosen upcycled materials because of the compelling textures, colors, and indeed also mystique of the items’ utilitarian origins. This show is an exhibition of contrasts between the “high” and “low” of society’s creations, the destruction of consumerism and the discoveries of art, the ugly and the beautiful, the serious and the playful. With skillful twists of form, manipulation of abstraction, and subtle – and sometimes even quite direct – references to the figure, these sculptors bring the long-forgotten stories of human refuse into the poignant personal stories of the artist, and in the process, turn the ashes of our manmade world into poignant works of art. Curated by Alice Zinnes and Carol Diamond
ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Eric Banks- Using everything from lint to rusty pipes, Eric Banks creates unified raw constructions of hope within decay and humor within life’s tortured complexities. Ken Butler is a musician-artist. Recombining disassociated found objects, he constructs – and often performs on innovative musical instruments, transforming our useless waste into objects of whimsy, joy, and rhythmic musicality.

In Carol Diamond’s artworks, found street “junk” of metal, glass, concrete, fabric, and wire mesh expresses tensions that synthesize into a vision of unity, repair, and wholeness. Bonny Leibowitz produces objects, installations, and paintings utilizing manmade and organic materials in ways that often disguise their origin, blurring the boundaries between the manufactured and the natural.

Referencing ancient artifacts, Shari Mendelson’s glistening vessels, made from plastic bottles, are so elegant and authentic, that their humble origins are all but impossible to believe. With repurposed cardboard boxes, concrete, and sand particles, Mark Van Wagner’s sculptures suggest archaeological, architectural, and anthropomorphic metaphors of conflict and ruin, protected within a shield of humor and restoration.

Fragility and healing are themes that characterize Shivani Patel’s sculptures and wall pieces. Assembled from scavenged metals, umbrellas and found rods, old jewelry, and other sundry things, they evoke an intimate poetry of twisting costume design, and the ornate details of ancient religious architecture, reflecting her family’s Hindu-Indian heritage.