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The Trash Into Treasure Delaware Art Contest challenges artists to create pieces that promote clean waterways.
The Trash Into Treasure Delaware Art Contest challenges artists to create pieces that promote clean waterways.
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Apeksha Jain’s art studio in her Wilmington home is lined with shelves of boxes filled with beads and mirrors, which she uses to create Lippan art. The traditional Indian wall art combines clay and mirrors to create intricate motifs.
Jain’s walls are also filled with her favorite oil paintings of landscapes inspired by Bob Ross. Among her art portfolio includes mixed media pieces using plants from her yard and shells she picked up at the beach.
The hobbyist artist and software engineer said upcycling is a common thread among her pieces. Jain collects trash — from rope to wine corks — to create art on canvas that portrays her love of nature.
“We already have a lot of waste lying around, so rather than buying something expensive from the market, I just thought, ‘Let’s collect everything,’” she said. “Let’s put some creativity and fun into the canvas and let’s make something. Maybe that can inspire others.”
Jain recently collected discarded bottle caps and food packaging to create a mixed media piece of art depicting a tortoise stuck in the trash, which she made from chains, string and plastic materials. A girl is crouched down to help the reptile, but she’s also stuck in the waste.
“If you utilize every trash, and recycle and reuse that and remove that, you can always get a very good nature around you, which will be pure, very healthy. That’s what I’m trying to show in my art piece,” Jain said.
The piece is part of the Trash Into Treasure Delaware Art Contest. The annual event organized by the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary challenges artists to create pieces that promote clean waterways. Artists feature wildlife found along the Christina River Watershed, or reuse trash they’ve collected from their homes or the environment — from pull tabs to plastic bags.
The art, which was voted on by the public, is on display in Wilmington’s Louis L. Redding City/County Building through April 29. The exhibit and contest work in conjunction with the Cristina River Cleanup, which takes place Saturday, April 11. More than 360 tons of trash have been cleared from the watershed since 1992, which supplies drinking water to people in New Castle County.
“A lot of artists are inspired by nature, and by using the cleanup as a reason to celebrate the Christina River watershed, it inspires a lot of artists to take that message of clean water into a visual format,” said Daniela Perez, the watershed community coordinator for the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary.
At the end of the contest, the organization uses the art to promote the importance of clean water at youth events and other educational opportunities.
Sharon Naccarato of Frederica, Delaware, is last year’s winner. The hobbyist and retired postmaster takes discarded metal and welds the items into sculptures of musical instruments and even horseshoe crabs.
This year, Naccarato collected trash while walking her rescue dog Heidi along the beach. She cut out a root beer box, corks and bottle caps and created the shape of owls on canvas. Naccarato said she hopes the competition inspires the general public to remember to recycle and collect trash during their walks outdoors.
“It’s very important, the message of keeping the waterways clean, because there’s so many animals and critters that live in there,” Naccarato said. “I don’t think people realize how such a small amount of trash they throw out, but it adds up over thousands of people.”
Naccarato encourages anyone at home to make their own art out of trash.
“I have no formal training. I’m really not an artist per se in the sense of someone who’s doing paintings,” she said. “But I just think if you try it, anything like that, you’ll find that you are more talented than you think you are.”
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