Thursday, April 7, 2005

Recycling materials go from trash to treasure.

South African-born artist Sophia Ainslie takes huge bales of recycled detergent bottles and cuts them open. Then, she digs into the middle, pulling the material out and making it bloom and grow into works of art.

Her intriguing concept caught the eye of Cathy McLaurin, special projects director of the Essex Art Center, 56 Island St., Lawrence.

McLaurin presents Deep Clean, Ainslie’s site-specific installation using recyclable materials, in the center’s Elizabeth Beland Gallery. It opens tomorrow with a reception from 5-7 p.m. and runs through June 9.

“I first met Sophia when one of our directors was giving a talk at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts a couple of years ago,” McLaurin said. “Since then, I’ve met her a number of times, and this exhibit has been a year in the works.”

Ainslie, who’s based in Boston, discovered her passion for working with recycled materials when she moved here, McLaurin said.

“She knew that cast-off materials were reused in South Africa. Here, she saw how they’re bound together for the recycling yard or thrown out,” McLaurin said. “She was surprised and concerned by what she calls the ‘American emphasis on consumerism and the resulting waste from the disposability of mass produced material goods.”

For her project here, Ainslie will bring in a one-ton bale of recycled detergent bottles from a recycling center. Ainslie will lead two Trash Formations workshops at the Essex Art Center. The first, on Tuesday, April 19, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. is for kids, ages 11 and up and costs $25. Older teens and adults may attend the second on Saturday, April 30, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at a cost of $30. Call 978-685-2343