“Art at the Dump” Exhibition Reception Brings Out More Than 600 People
More than 600 people attended the opening reception for the exhibition, Art at the Dump: Twenty Years of the Artist in Residence Program at Recology at Intersection 5M. The exhibition, which runs through September 25th, is co-sponsored by Recology, Intersection for the Arts, and Hub Bay Area, and features a selection of work made from recycled materials by artists during their residencies at Recology San Francisco. For more information, hours, and directions: http://www.recology.com/AIR
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Art at the Dump: Twenty Years of the Artist in Residence Program at Recology
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Recology, Intersection for the Arts, and Hub Bay Area are pleased to present the exhibition, Art at the Dump: Twenty Years of the Artist in Residence Program at Recology at Intersection 5M. This exhibition celebrates the twentieth anniversary of the art and education program at Recology San Francisco, a one-of-a-kind initiative that enables artists to work with materials taken directly from the city of San Francisco’s waste stream, while teaching the public about recycling and resource conservation. Art at the Dump presents a sampling of work made by some of the more than eighty artists who have participated in the program. Work in a variety of mediums—sculpture, photography, painting, drawing, performance, video, textiles, and musical composition—is represented, and often runs counter to traditional notions of what art made from found materials should look like.
The Recology Artist in Residence Program was established in 1990 at the same time that curbside recycling was being implemented in San Francisco. Conceived by artist and activist Jo Hanson, it was the most innovative component of an outreach plan developed by the City and Recology San Francisco (then known as Sanitary Fill Company) to educate people about recycling. Now twenty years later, the Artist in Residence Program has grown to include an Environmental Learning Center, an extensive tour program, a three-acre sculpture garden, off-site exhibitions, and has been nationally recognized and awarded as the only program of its kind in the country. Artists are provided with a stipend and a well-equipped studio to make artwork from materials they scavenge from the Public Disposal and Recycling Area (“the dump”). Artists speak to the more than 5,000 students and adults who annually attend the San Francisco garbage and recycling facility tours which focus on the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling.
“Throwing things away is an automatic action for many of us and I think art has a remarkable way of showing us the layers of our existence that our repetitive daily lives obscure” says former artist-in-residence David King. Though the artwork is incredibly varied, the connecting thread is that these were all materials that at one time passed through the hands of San Franciscans—things once with meaning or function, determined to no longer be of use. But as the artists demonstrate, much of what we throw away still does have the potential to be used.
The exhibition features the work of over fifty artists including Estelle Akamine, Ellen Babcock, Bill Basquin, Nemo Gould, James Gouldthorpe, David Hevel, Dee Hibbert Jones, Christina Mazza, Sirron Norris, Scott Oliver, Nicole Repack, Isis Rodriguez, James Sansing, Nathaniel Stookey, E. Banker White, and Noah Wilson. Work by artists who have participated in the Student Artist in Residence Program will be presented in the building’s café. A publication documenting the history of the Recology Artist in Residence program will be available for sale.
When:
Exhibition: July 21–September 25, 2010
Reception: Wednesday, July 21st, 6-8 pm
Gallery hours: Tuesday–Saturday, 12-6 pm; First Thursdays: 12-8 pm
Where:
Intersection 5M, In the Historic San Francisco Chronicle Building
925 Mission Street (at 5th Street), San Francisco, CA 94103
For more information:
Art at the Dump: Josh Short & Ben Burke
Recology is pleased to announce a two-day art exhibition and reception for local artists Josh Short and Ben Burke. The exhibition will be the culmination of four months of work by Short and Burke who have scavenged materials from the dump to make artwork and promote recycling and reuse.
A retrospective exhibition celebrating the life of artist and former Artist in Residence Program staff member, Henri Marie-Rose (1922-2010) will be held concurrently at 401 Tunnel Avenue.
Break in Case of Emergency, Josh Short
The Uncanny Valley Orphanage, Ben Burke
Friday, May 14, 2010, 5pm to 9pm
Saturday, May 15, 2010, 1pm to 5pm
503 Tunnel Ave. San Francisco, CA 94134
http://www.recology.com/AIR
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Break in Case of Emergency
Using home appliances, car parts, stereo equipment, and electronic toys pulled from the waste stream, Josh Short deconstructs, and subsequently reconstructs objects, creating art imbued with new functionality and symbolic meaning. In a time when the dominant nature of American culture seems oppressive or guilt inducing, Short looks to its roots, reinvigorating an old-school notion of American ingenuity and celebrating home hobbyists, inventors, tinkerers, and those who find communion in beers shared over the engine of a car. Short, who received an MFA from UC Davis, also explores a darker side to the plentiful materials he has collected—consumerism and waste as signs of a coming apocalypse. Through “in case of emergency” pieces he anticipates a time when we all might need to rely on our ingenuity—and garbage—to survive. In addition to presenting objects in the gallery, Short will be grilling on his mobile bar-b-que/dj station, made from a real car grill and hotplates, replete with disco lights, smoke machine, and a turn-table spinning found vinyl. The public is encouraged to come and partake in the ritual.
The Uncanny Valley Orphanage
In Ben Burke’s exhibition, The Uncanny Valley Orphanage, he explores the concept of the “uncanny valley,” a term coined for robotics or animation that too closely resemble the human form—figures that are incredibly familiar, yet disturbingly wrong. For Burke’s cast of uncanny characters he has vivified found mannequins and other forms through lo-fi animatronics to create interactive assemblage pieces. Sculpture meets theater as this troupe of misfits become actors in a presentation which will include performances by Burke, whose interests lie in traditions of theatrical showmanship. Informed by carnival and vaudeville, Burke’s art incorporates fables, story-telling, and dark comedy to explore the magical or arcane, using the past to contextualize, or even reinvigorate the present. The works may channel the ghosts of performers of old, or perhaps just prompt a night of crazy dreams.
About the Artist in Residence Program
The Artist in Residence Program at Recology San Francisco is a one-of-a-kind program started in 1990 to encourage people to conserve natural resources and instill a greater appreciation for the environment and art in children and adults. Artists work for four months in studio space on site, use materials recovered from the Public Disposal and Recycling Area, and speak to students and the general public. Over eighty professional Bay Area artists have completed residencies, and applications are accepted annually in August.
Directions to 503 Tunnel Ave.
Directions from downtown San Francisco & East Bay
Go south on Highway 101 and get off at the exit marked “Candlestick Park/Tunnel Ave.” After the stop sign, continue forward onto Beatty Road until you reach Tunnel Avenue. Turn right on Tunnel Avenue. Go a half block to 503 Tunnel Avenue.
Directions from the Cow Palace
Go east on Geneva Avenue until you reach Bayshore Boulevard. Turn left on Bayshore Boulevard. After a few blocks, turn right on Blanken Avenue, then make a quick right turn on Tunnel Avenue. 503 Tunnel Avenue will be on the left.
Direction from the Peninsula
Go north on Highway 101 and get off at the “Candlestick Park” exit (this is the first Candlestick Park exit). Turn left at the first stop sign onto Alanna Way and go under the freeway. The road curves before you reach the second stop sign. Turn right on Beatty and continue to the end of the road. Turn right on Tunnel Avenue. Go a half block to 503 Tunnel Avenue.
Parking
There is ample street parking, unless there is a football game at Candlestick Park.
Public Transit
The T-Third streetcar line and bus line 9 stop within walking distance of 503 Tunnel Ave. (The 9 bus stops at Bayshore Boulevard and Arleta Avenue, three blocks away from our location.) The Caltrain Bayshore Station stop is located directly across the street from our facility. For a schedule of times, please visit Caltrain’s website.
Recology Participates in Chinese New Year Parade
On Saturday, February 27, 2010, Recology celebrated the Year of the Tiger by participating in the San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade. The parade is the largest New Year parade of its kind outside of China, as well as the largest night parade in the United States.
The event is an annual favorite of Recology employees and their families. Daisy, a dragon made from recycled materials by artists Dana Albany and Flash Hopkins, headed the Recology contingent that also included two antique garbage trucks and the award winning drill team lead by Ramiro Alvarez. Participating drill team members were Quentin Booker, Ruben Candelario, Tony Falzon, Jaime Gonzalez, Alfredo Guzman, Joe Rattaro, Moises Reynoso, Manuel Vera, Jim Wile, and Luis Zuniga.
Gung Hay Fat Choy!
Thrown Out: Art from the San Francisco Dump at the Sanchez Art Center
Bill Basquin CaraCara Orange Peel, 2009
The Sanchez Art Center will present the exhibition, Thrown Out: Art from the San Francisco Dump, an exhibition of work from the permanent collection of Recology San Francisco. The exhibition will run from February 26 – March 28, 2010, with an opening reception Friday, February 26, from 7-9 pm.
Works by seventeen artists who have participated in Recology’s artist-in-residence program will be featured in the Center’s Main Gallery. Artists include Nemo Gould, Ellen Babcock, Noah Wilson and Susannah Webster.
The Sanchez Art Center is located in Pacifica and presents exhibitions by emerging and established California artists in its three gallery spaces. The Center has an education and outreach program, and provides affordable studio space for up to thirty Bay Area artists. Gallery hours are: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, 1-5 pm. Admission is free. www.sanchezartcenter.org.
Nemo Gould Guzzler, 2007
Sanchez Art Center
Pacifica Center for the Art
1220-B Linda Mar Boulevard, Pacifica, CA 94044, 650.355.1894
map
Environmental Learning Center Open to the Public, Fridays 1-3pm at Recology San Francisco
The Environmental Learning Center at Recology San Francisco houses a resource center, classroom, and gallery. On Fridays from 1-3pm the public may visit to watch videos about the company and see artwork made by former Recology artists-in-residence in the Environmental Learning Center Gallery. The public also has access to the Environmental Resource Center, which provides books, teacher resources, and other materials about conservation and recycling. Come and visit!
Environmental Learning Center
Open Fridays, 1-3pm
Recology San Francisco 
401 Tunnel Avenue, San Francisco, CA
http://www.sfrecycling.com/AIR
(415) 330-1414
art@recology.com
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