UpCycle CRC 2013 Open Houses

UpCycle CRC is pleased to announce expanded programming and Open Houses to introduce prospective families to our programs for young children.

UpCycle Creative Reuse Center 2013 Program Open House Dates:

at Convergence, 1801 N. Quaker Lane, Alexandria, 22302

• Wednesday, January 16 from 10 am – 12 pm
• Saturday, February 2 from 10 am – 12 pm

Our Open Houses are opportunities for prospective families to drop-in, meet our teachers, and see what our Reggio-Inspired programs are all about.  Please RSVP to Kelley Organek, kelleyorganek@hotmail.com, if you plan to attend one of our Open Houses.

Community Garland

The Community Garland started at Art On the Avenue in October 2012. The orange climbing rope was retired and donated by Sport Rock on Eisenhower Avenue. The community manipulated repurposed items to decorate the orange rope. Some combined materials with symbolic representation such as Texas, Corona and V. While others created based on aesthetics and mood. Work on the rope was continued by children at Maury Elementary School. Many hands have come together to create this garland. It is now on display outside of A Show Of Hands on Mount Vernon Avenue in Del Ray.

Creating an UpCycled Community Garland

Crowds of visitors to Art on the Avenue 2012 were drawn to the UpCycle tent of materials and enjoyed a hands-on experience at the festival.  People of all ages (and species–what was that green guy?) worked with our materials, decorating a log with bottle caps and creating embellishments for our rope.

Many were drawn to the tools:  cutting wire and hammering were not an every day experience for most.  And, one mother commented that it had been a long time since she had created something.  She, and many others, were quite satisfied with their work.

This winter, the garland we created will decorate the holiday tree in front of A Show of Hands, a popular Del Ray shop featuring local craft and artwork at 2301 Mt. Vernon Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22301.

We hope our work will inspire you to find ways to give discarded materials new life!

Visit Us at Art on the Avenue 2012

UpCycle will be at Art on the Avenue on the Mount Vernon Field on Saturday, October 6 from 10 am – 3 pm.  We will have a variety of materials that might have otherwise been discarded.  We invite you to explore our collection of reusable materials, select items that speak to you, and add them to our garland.  We challenge you to connect, layer or join more than one item before attaching it to the rope.  Look for our Art on the Avenue 2012 Community Garland in Del Ray in the coming months, and check back here for our post about the event.

A special thanks to Sportrock Climbing Center for donating the spent rope for our project!

 

I Realize How Long It’s Been Since I’ve Worked This Way

On Sunday, June 3rd we hosted a drop-in workshop at Artomatic 2012 in Arlington, VA to explore, “What inspires you to create?”

A trail of materials and our question drew visitors into our workshop on the 11th floor.

The trail led to an abundance of materials displayed on the floor.  Everything provided was previously cast off as trash but reclaimed for creative reuse.  Materials ranged from broken light strands, eyeglass lenses, old game and puzzle pieces, shoe insoles, corks and more.

Participants explored the materials and selected items for their project.  Once they finished working, we asked the participants what inspired them to create with the reusable materials.  Here is what we heard:

“A reminder that the beach is not far away.”

“A Dream Come True” – C. Donovan and L. Harman

“Life is inspirational in all of its forms and, when we are alone to create new from used we rejuvenate ouselves. Line, form, space and movement inspire me.” – Travis Hipp

What Inspires You to Create? Artomatic – June 3, 2012; 1 – 3 pm

UpCycle is hosting an interactive drop-in workshop on the 11th floor of Artomatic on June 3, 2012 from 1 – 3 pm.  Stop by to be a part of a community reuse project!

http://artomatic.org/

• 

Now until June 23!

1851 S. Bell Street, Crystal City, Virginia

1,300 artists and performers take over an 11-story building and turn it into
DC’s biggest creative event.

Plan your visit – directions, hours and more.

Art On The Avenue 2011

Art on the Avenue was a big event!!! Even though it rained for most of the day, we had a very steady stream of visitors come to the UpCycle tent. We offered three experiences with materials. Decorating a log, found in the river, with bottle caps donated by Los Tios was a very popular experience. The decorated log will become the base to a small glass-tip table.

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Another opportunity that was offered was weaving with color collections.

We also offered collage. The glue did not cooperate fully with the wetness of the rain but that did not stop one young lady who created a doll with the materials available. She used the nails and hammer from the log to create what she wanted.