Found Object Assemblage

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"Can works be made which are not "of art""?

Marcel Duchamp

 

"Found Object" describes art created by familiar objects or products that are not normally considered materials from which art is made. 

 

My assemblages are composed of vintage scrap materials and oddities that I've obtained from ongoing scavenge hunts. They tend to be abstract, geometric in nature and somewhat architectural.

My intention is generally not about representing a theme but creating contemporary visuals with a "feel" that honors the original time stamp. 

I often wonder about the origins and people that utilized these objects and how they would perceive their final destination.

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My fascination with random vintage objects originated with my grandfather, Charlie.

He was a Blacksmith of the Great Depression Era and gatherer of oddities with a penchant for utilizing things in unintended ways; much out of necessity as nothing was wasted. Occasionally his personality would emerge with a whimsical "whirlygig" yard-art-piece, very primitive and  representative of his time. He and many others like him were making "something" out of "nothing" and recycling refuse long before it was a conscientious and expected act.

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The American Cheese Box Collection

emerged from a  collection of vintage wood cheese boxes found in flea markets and vintage junk stores. Because of my attachment to the kitchen and being a chef, the idea developed to create assemblage paintings within each box. The abstraction represents patterns from table clothes, napkins, aprons, and distressed or freshly painted wood surfaces. The continued series represents my contemporary vision of a former life.

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