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Davis

Davis, California

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Junk 2 Genius

reCREATE & the Davis Art Center

Tomorrow afternoon the Davis Art Center and Roseville-based reCREATE will present a recycled art competition to celebrate California Arts Day. The Arts Day takes place annually, on every first Friday of October. This year’s Arts Day theme isThe Art in Me.

reCREATE, a non-profit organization based in Roseville, works with businesses in the Sacramento area to collect manufactured byproducts, processed materials and other various recycled items that are used to help educate local students about environmental conservation. reCREATE redistributes these collections through arts education programs and in a Creative Reuse Store in Roseville.

“We encourage conservation and promote the idea of students becoming personal stewards to the environment by making changes to their everyday consumption and waste behavior,said reCREATE’s executive director Donna Sangwin.We couple that message with art and creative expression. Most schools have a very small budget for art materials so we try and bridge that gap and make art affordable and accessible for everyone.

Through the reCREATE school program, set up in October 2008, the organization teaches younger students about natural resources, conservation, eco-friendliness and environmental awareness, and also supports creativity by encouraging them to make artwork from recycled materials.

“reCREATE is a collection of what I considered to be the best practices of several re-use programs from around the United States. Art From Scrap in Santa Barbara has a wonderful school program and our curriculum is loosely modeled after theirs,Sangwin said.A program called Trash for Teaching in Southern California had the idea of taking the field trip to the school, so we coupled that idea with our lessons.

Similarly, the Davis Arts Center actively supports the green movement. In efforts to educate children and adults alike about the importance of reusing and recycling, the Davis Art Center will be partnering with reCREATE to kick off the first everJunk 2 GeniusTeam Art Competition. The competition will take place at the Davis Art Center located downtown at 1919 F St. tomorrow evening from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m.

 

Junk 2 Genius

The idea for Junk 2 Genius began when Sangwin contacted Davis Art Center executive director Erie Vitiello about a possible collaboration to encourage people to use recycled resources.

“Sangwin has been doing recycling art in the public schools in Roseville for a year or so and was interested in expanding to Davis, Vitiello said.She contacted me last spring about doing some kind of partnership and we thought it would be fun to have an event on California Arts Day.

In addition to educating a younger crowd, reCREATE and the Davis Art Center have teamed up to present the Junk 2 Genius Art Competition to appeal to adults as well.

Most adults don’t get a chance to feed their inner artist very often, so this is a fun and playful way for adults to do that,Sangwin said.

“I wanted an older age range represented as well,Junk 2 Genius said event chair Suzanne Kimmel.I know the UC Davis soccer coach and asked if [the team] would like to participate in the event.

Surely enough, a team of UC Davis Men’s Soccer players will be competing against eight other teams – Hibbert Lumber, Davis Waldorf School, Shaw Engineering, That’s Random Dinner Club, Davis Food Co-op, St. James School and Davis Ace Hardware.

In the Junk 2 Genius competition, teams will compete for theTrophy du Trashaward. Each group will receive a box containing recycled materials in which members may use to build a unique work of art.

Teams are expected to create a sculpture no larger than three square feet. According to the rules, only four artists at most may be working on a sculpture simultaneously, while others may be, as the event says,sketching, thinking, coaching or drinking a beer.

Team members are also encouraged to bring their own tools, such as wire, screws, propane torches, pliers, shears, saws, knifes, hammers, needles, zipties, solder, nails and tape. For a list of approved materials, please contact the Davis Art Center. In addition, each team can bring onesecret weaponwhich can either be an additional tool or another material and may not take up more than 20% of the total sculpture. Chainsaws do not count as a secret weapon, as specifically stated in the rules.

After the allotted time is up, a group of Davis Art Center and reCREATE judges will decide the winning team. People attending may purchase votes for their favorite team to win the People’s Choice Award.

 

Nuts & Bolts

The event will feature a garage sale and a silent purse auction in which participants bid for a purse containing mystery items. Other activities include art projects usingcast-off materialsand a hat-making contest. Additionally, local radio station KDVS 90.3 FM will be DJ-ing throughout the evening.

Admission to the Junk 2 Genius Art Competition is free. The tickets for food, beverages and activities can be purchased and all proceeds benefit reCREATE and the Davis Arts Center.

 

SIMONE WAHNG can be reached at arts@theaggie.org.

 

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