Image: Steven Tyrone

Stonehenge, the prehistoric monument made of massive standing stones in the heart of England, has inspired many an artist. For decades, people have been making their own reconstructions of the ancient site of worship, with whatever materials are at hand.

The craze, however, hit a new pace in the summer of 1986, when Stonehenge became a world heritage site and was fenced off. Since then, various ‘Henges have cropped up all around the world, their spirit unbroken — and some of the greatest take the druid’s credo as their own, reusing and recycling materials to create truly green creations.

7. Foamhenge

Image: Alun Salt

Though perhaps not spectacular sounding, Foamhenge probably comes the closest to recreating the real thing, because foam, if painted and cut to the right size, can emulate almost any material. Grey-colored foam does in fact look surprisingly like the real rock. This full-size replica of Stonehenge is located in Natural Bridge, VA.

Image: Ben Schumin

Creator Mark Cline of Enchanted Castle Studio made it entirely out of Styrofoam, even opting to include the Altar Stone behind the Great Trilithon — a construction still debated by historians.

6. Phonehenge

Image via coasterimage

In a similar vein is Phonehenge, a performance area made from red British-style phone booths. The installation is part of Hard Rock Park, a 140-acre rock ‘n’ roll theme park located in Myrtle Beach, SC, now called Freestyle Music Park. After a grand opening on April 15, 2008, the park has remained closed since the 2009 season. If only they’d move Phonehenge off site and let us admire it year round!

5. Fridgehenge

Image: Jim Rosebery

Fridgehenge in Santa Fe, NM, is made up of dozens of unwanted white fridges that have been arranged in a circle. The lower ones have since been decorated with graffiti, making Fridgehenge a true contemporary counterpart of the ancient mystic place.

4. Tankhenge

Image via zoneofthefree

Tankhenge was built by guerilla art group Mutoid Waste in Berlin in 1992. Just three years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, its location, close to the Reichstag, was more than symbolic. Decommissioned German tanks were painted bright colors and then stacked one on top of another to form Stonehenge’s trademark arches. Speaking about the project at the time, the artists said, “If you want the stones, you can keep them… We’ll build our own!” And thus the worldwide motto of ‘Henges was born: “Mutate and Survive.”

3. Banksy’s Port-a-potty-henge

Image: Mark Crossfield

Who but guerilla artist Banksy would dare erect a mock Stonehenge so close to the real thing, in the Sacred Space field of the Glastonbury Music Festival? To top it off, he chose reclaimed chemical toilets as his medium. Ingenious, no doubt, and we’re wondering if the energy field created might help one’s bowel movements. If so, this discovery might have gastroenterologists flocking from all over the world…

2. Snowhenge

Image: MichiganArchaeologist

There was a special purpose behind this rendition of Stonehenge carved out of snow: a group of amateur archaeoastronomical and physiological scientists, calling themselves the Michigan DRUIDS, built Snowhenge last winter to understand some of the site’s ancient mysteries. According to some historians, Vikings, Phoenicians, Egyptians and the lost tribe of Israel may all have been in Michigan at one point. As anthropological remains suggest — especially a stone circle similar to the one in Stonehenge, found on Lake Michigan’s Beaver Island in 1985 — any one of these ancient groups could have built and left monuments in Michigan.

Image via Snowhenge

Snowhenge is a one-third scale replica of Stonehenge and was built at the MacKay-Jaycees Family Park in Grand Rapids, MI, where it will stay frozen year round. Each of Snowhenge’s pillars is 6.5 feet tall, and all are perfectly aligned, according to astronomical markers, forming a circle 30 feet in diameter. All in all, nearly 1,000 cubic feet of packed snow was used.

1. Carhenge

Image: Kevin Saff

Carhenge in Alliance, NE, is made up of 38 vintage cars that were rusting on local farms and dumps until creator Jim Reinders and a crew of 35 helpers recycled them to build a memorial to his father, who had once owned the farm on which Carhenge now towers.

Image: Plumbago

Photographer Kevin Saff overheard the following conversation about Reinders: “The thing is, the guy is basically nuts… he wanted me to help him do it, but he wanted to do it the traditional way, with mead and all that.” Carhenge was dedicated on the summer solstice day of 1987 and, though locals still have mixed feelings about the installation, it draws 80,000 visitors from all over the world every year — which is comparable to the real thing!

All this creativity is an inspiration for creating new versions of Stonehenges. There are many materials yet unused — glass, straw, wool, matches. Is anyone listening? We’ll keep our eyes open for new versions.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Amy Ridener

Verizon Wireless’ HopeLine program collects no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories from any wireless service provider at our Communications Stores nationwide. These unused phones provide a valuable connection for victims of domestic violence — a hopeline — thanks to the nation’s most reliable wireless network. Donated phones provide a safe way to stay in touch with family, counselors, employers and landlords as victims work to rebuild their lives.

More than 200 tons of electronic waste and batteries have been kept out of landfills through HopeLine while helping to address a social issue that knows no social or financial boundaries. The statistics across the program are inspiring: Since October 2001, when Verizon Wireless launched the national recycling program, 7 million phones have been collected, and the equivalent of 300 million minutes of free wireless service has been provided.

A multi-faceted program, HopeLine’s recycling effort also provides financial support for local and domestic violence organizations, community and corporate awareness programs, and partnerships with law enforcement agencies, professional sports teams, educational institutions and corporations worldwide.

So, please make sure your unused phone has nine lives and drop it off at your nearest Verizon Wireless Store or mail it for free by downloading a postage-paid label at verizonwireless.com/hopelinemailinglabel.

For more information, please visit verizonwireless.com/hopeline.

Amy Ridener is the Manager of Verizon Sustainability.

“Woman With Connections,” 2005, electronic connections. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

Federico Uribe’s torso pieces might all come in roughly the same shape, but consisting of a vast array of recycled everyday items, they couldn’t be more different.

“La Femme Fatale,” 2000, baby bottle nipples. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

Reusing the commonplace is fundamental to Uribe’s artwork. Items are stripped of their practical purpose by being reassembled into new shapes, leaving only the color, form and texture of the original objects. By recycling seemingly boring shapes, Uribe hopes to reawaken an appreciation of their beauty as if they were being seen for the first time.

“Dominatrix,” 2004, dominoes. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

While having a distinctly modern flavor, suggesting pop art’s reappropriation of the everyday, Uribe’s torso pieces also recall the marble forms and contours of classical art — as if Roman sculpture had been reworked in cans of Campbell’s soup.

“Cybersex,” computer keys. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

In fact, Uribe’s pieces are made from all manner of materials, from dominoes, screws and computer keys, to plastic forks, brushes and cleaning supplies, as well as a host of other found objects. The only requirement is that they must inspire the artist’s “aesthetic instinct” of beauty.

“La Bocalista,” 2000, rubber lips. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

The creation of the sculptures is a labor-intensive process, requiring compulsive repetition as the disparate elements are weaved together to form a whole. In the piece above, rubber lips have been brought together into the human form — with the lips meeting as flowers. Meanwhile, below is “Still Life,” which sees plastic fruits stitched together in a subversion of Giuseppe Arcimboldo’s well-known paintings of vegetables, piled into human figures.

“Still Life,” 2000, plastic fruits. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

Several pieces use similar objects to very different effects — for example “Bleeding Bride,” below, uses pencil heads to form a spiky, cactus-like form from color pencils, while La Fautive uses pencil erasers to form a smooth, calmer form.

“Bleeding Bride,” 2005, pencil heads. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

“La Fautive,” 2005, pencil ends. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

Disarmingly, the pieces have been given humorous names, using simple wordplay and recycling popular metaphors to affirm their basic positivity. The playful titling explores the way that that the names of the objects fit into the language, while subtly highlighting the extraordinariness and the oddness of the everyday. For example, a series of busts made of screws is called “Everybody gets screwed,” combining a simple pun with the unpleasant notions of having screws driven into oneself and the metaphorical notion of “being screwed.”

“Screwed,” screws. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

In the early part of his career Uribe was concerned with similarly dark themes, working as a painter to explore dark and brooding canvases, preoccupied with Catholic themes of sexuality, pain and guilty.

“Dominatrix,” dominoes. Used with permission of Federico Uribe and Annina Nosei Gallery.

His great turning point came in 1996, in Guadalajara, Mexico, when he began trawling street markets for odds and ends, looking for baby-bottle nipples, screws and plastic forks. With an assembled collection of shapes, it was only a short step to reusing them to assemble sculptures of the human form.

“Secretary,” 2004, computer keys. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

“Mujer Embalada,” 2004 bullets. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

This new period came with a change of heart: his pieces would endeavor to instigate positivity. His ultimate ambition became to inspire a lasting sense of humor, beauty and love in the memory of his audience.

“Candidata,” 2004, padlocks. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

Uribe says, “I have the hope that people who relate to my sculptures and live with them will see the love I put into them. I want people to feel that I do this with a lot of careful attention and the purpose of beauty. I give my life to my work and I want people to see it.”

“Mujer Domestica,” 2005, clothes pegs. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

“Hooker,” 2006, safety pins. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

Uribe is serious when he talks about passion. The sculptures are intended to assume a physical, sensual presence, enticing the viewer to feel their form and texture, stripped of the mundane origins of their components by the radical transformative process.

“Puzzled,” 2003, jigsaw puzzle pieces. Used with permission of Federico Uribe and Annina Nosei Gallery.

Uribe explains: “If a sculpture makes viewers smile or compels them to want to touch it, then, I believe, it becomes a permanent and amiable memory, which generates affection and love.”

“Mujer Centenaria,” 2003, coins. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

“Blonde,” 2005, jute. Used with permission of Federico Uribe.

Federico Uribe’s work can be found at his website, here.

Mischievous. All images used with permission of Anton Tang.

There are times when many of us would like to cover our heads with a cardboard box and shield ourselves from the outside world. Other times, we walk around feeling as if we’re enclosed in such packaging anyway — like faceless, boxed-up products on an assembly line. Yet whichever our experience, alienated or anonymous, one plain fact gives us hope: We’re all human. And we’re not alone.

Stroll

These are the impressions one might have on observing the miniature mis-en-scenes created by Singapore-based photographer Anton Tang, an artist who reuses toys to express his uniquely playful and comic, yet simultaneously touching take on life, and its fragility. Cue cuteness overload.

Never give up

When we think of recycling objects or materials, we usually think about recycling on a big scale — tips designed for such purposes, refuse collectors arriving in the early hours, that kind of thing. But for Anton, finding a fresh use for old toys is a distinctly small-scale business — indeed one whose awe-inspiring detail you’d need a sharp eye, or a magnifying glass, to truly appreciate in person.

Push push

“Toys?” we hear you say. “But that’s cardboard in those shots, right?” Wrong. Sorry to disappoint you, paper recycling lovers, but the objects Anton has so ingeniously brought to life beneath his artful eye are Danboard figures, or Mini Danbos for short — characters in cardboard box suits born of the Japanese manga series Yotsuba&!.

Swimming Fail

From the Revoltech line of Japanese toy company Kaiyodo, each figure, says the sales spiel, “is plastic, has movable joints, light up eyes and stands around 5″ tall.” In a curious example of Japanese creativity cum corporate sponsorship, the different toys bear different brands, from a mini Amazon model that measures just 3″, to “full sized Amazon & 7Eleven logo marked versions.”

Good day

However, in Anton’s set pieces, these commercial products acquire a soul that goes beyond their original purpose — even in the hands of the most creative children. Through Anton’s macro lens, they become art. Anton takes the tiny models he collected years back (reportedly having bought them from the virtual recycling yard that is eBay) and places them in Lilliputian, yet unexpectedly familiar settings, where the ordinarily small objects around the figurines assume a magnitude beyond their normal measure, allowing the pint-sized players in the scenes to touch our hearts.

Hug

In Anton’s world, scaling a curb is no mean feat for a baby Danbo and calls for a helping hoist from a parent who promises, “Don’t worry, I will catch you if you fall.”

Be Careful

Other times, the guardians are seen holding their little one’s hand during a happy stroll, or the family simply spends time together “randomly doing some silly stuff.”

Danbo Family

For a Danbo, riding carefree on the back of a real-life terrapin may be the only way to her next destination, but it’s a fun-filled means of transportation nonetheless.

Bumpy Ride

At other moments, the Danbos express the less upbeat aspects of human emotion, with loneliness a recurring theme. The sight of a dead leaf evokes a “fear of death” in one forlorn Danbo…

Nothing Lasts Forever

… while another even considers suicide while perched on the edge of a precipice that appears to be part of a water garden.

Suicide

Yet even when the little guy walks the line, disconsolate, we’re assured that where “there is light there is hope.”

Hope

Mischief and bullying also rear their heads in the set-tos between Little Amazon and 7-11, with the former alternately bashing his bigger nemesis and getting a hand-off in return.

Bully

By turns we witness a Danbo shackled in plastic chains, reflecting on itself in shallow water or “exploring but always ending up nowhere.”

Aimless Wanderer

Each little scene touches upon simple yet singular aspects of human emotions and relationships — whether love or conflict, hope or fear, joy or sorrow. From the highs of producing “wonderful bokehs” from a “mysterious pokerdot” container (something from the kaleidoscope of human experience has to be lost in translation!)…

Mysterious Container

… to the lows of being lost and alone — and yet even in this last scenario, a guiding hand appears, plus the reassuring words: “When you can’t get back again, I will find you darling, I’ll bring you home.”

By Your Side

Life forms from our world take on new roles in this downsized reality. A pet hamster shares its secrets with one of the little figures…

Gogo Hamster

… while a poor fish trapped in an undersized tank has Mini Danbo try to cheer it up.

Poor fish in a small tank

Some objects from the big person’s world appear small, like a miniature beetle car; others loom large, such as a rollerblade whose wheels the Danbo team are busy recycling.

Inline Maintenance

Although Anton’s Danbos are actually plastic, perhaps they can inspire people to do something creative with their full-size cardboard boxes. At any rate, by choosing not to let his toys gather dust in the attic, or to throw them in trash, we think Anton has made a statement about recycling that goes beyond the material. In reimagining the way in which his characters relate — using to full effect the “Revolver Joint” technology that gives the figures their motion, stability and dynamic poses — Anton recycles anew what it means to be human. And we all recognize ourselves, cardboard or not.

Chained

As Anton told PLATEFORM magazine: “Danbo never fears to explore things around her that might cause mayhem. Every series tells a story, so viewers will feel sad, happy or have fun when they see it.” Thinking outside the box? Reckon so.

Lonely Hopscotch

Also an avid BMX rider blessed with incredible balance, Anton is a talented guy able to translate his freestyle creativity into different contexts. His Danboards are, he told 1-800-RECYCLING, “an ongoing project with no deadlines” in which he aims simply “to take pictures and add life to them.” He has also “shot other pictures, mainly BMX flatland and landscapes,” and if his Danbos are anything to go by, we’re sure it is photography full of charm and personality that refuses to be boxed in.

Special thanks to Anton Tang for kind permission to use his wonderful photographs in this post

Extra sources: 1, 2

X-wings by Demilliac inspired by Hubert de Lartigue

From the streets of Coruscant to the deserts of Tatooine, the Star Wars saga featured some of the most brilliant design ever to have graced the big screen. Whether it was Darth Vader’s armor or the mechanics of the X-wing’s hull, this amazing level of detail brought the fantastic fairytale storyline to life. Perhaps it’s only natural that these amazing visuals have been immortalized by the series’ legion of fans in the form of origami, using the exquisite Japanese art form of paper folding to recreate the cinematic spectacle in miniature — and reusing paper and cardboard while they’re at it!

Millenium Falcon. Image used by permission of Hubert de Lartigue

A pioneer in the field of Star Wars origami is Parisian artist Hubert de Lartigue. While he usually works with an airbrush, luckily for us, an idle moment saw him turning his hand to transforming Parisian Metro tickets into Star Wars space vessels — recycling in action!

X-wing. Image used by permission of Hubert de Lartigue

X-wings. Image used by permission of Hubert de Lartigue

Above are Hubert’s beautiful X-wings, as well as his fantastically crafted Millennium Falcon. The image below, showing two Millennium Falcons alongside the scalpel with which they were made, illustrates just how tiny they really are. However, despite their small scale, they perfectly capture the high-tech romance of the sci-fi spaceships.

Millenium Falcons with scalpel. Image used by permission of Hubert de Lartigue

Hubert has written extensive bilingual tutorials explaining exactly how you can make your own origami X-wings and Millenium Falcons using his designs — you just have to get a hold of some Parisian Metro tickets! The devilishly detailed Falcon takes four tickets to complete and makes use of the logos and designs on the ticket, while the X-wing puts to good use the card’s thick central strip for its nose. As Hubert comments, all the X-wing is missing is R2-D2.

X-wing. Image by kbaird

Hubert’s amazing pieces aren’t strictly speaking pure origami — he works with 30-mm by 65-mm Metro tickets, rather than with squares, he uses multiple sheets and he cuts the card to give him more flexibility as he works. The design above shows an X-wing made from a single piece of paper, and, by necessity, comes with a pointed noise, made from folds of paper, and lacks the detail and complexity of Hubert’s design.

X-wing. Image by klyphord

This design is slightly different again, featuring a flatter upper side, but it can nevertheless fit in the palm of your hand. If anything, the recycled print gives an added layer of depth to the piece as the text runs over and around the vessel. It’s easy to imagine this piece flying across the room and into a paper dogfight.

TIE fighter. Image used by permission of Hubert de Lartigue

Hubert didn’t just stop at X-wings; he also made TIE fighters (above) while his work inspired a fan to create an Imperial Shuttle (seen below, alongside his other designs).

Assorted vehicles. Imperial Shuttle by taklyt inspired by Hubert de Lartigue

In all, Hubert spent six months working on the designs — and as you can see below, he certainly made a few of them. It’s a veritable fleet!

X-wings. Image used by permission of Hubert de Lartigue

Science-fiction is certainly close to Hubert’s heart — he originally decided to become an artist after seeing draft designs for Alejandro Jodorowsky’s planned filming of Frank Herbert’s Dune. He now specializes in the human form, and in particular pinups.

However, there is a world of Star Wars origami beyond Hubert, and the series has inspired recreations spanning far beyond its iconic vehicles. Below is a startlingly effective miniature of the great Jedi master himself, Yoda, which perfectly captures his hunched shoulders and pointy ears. The reverse side of the paper has cunningly been used to color Yoda’s face and hands, distinguishing his skin from his cloak.

Yoda. Image by Jonathan_W

Yoda. Image by Jonathan_W

While the more recent prequels might be considered to be rather less iconic, that’s not to say that they didn’t inspire some amazing recreations. Below is a battle droid designed and folded by Phillip West from a single 17-inch square of tissue foil — using the reverse side to color the droid’s weapon. It stands next to an action figure so you can see the design that the paper artist was working toward.

Battle droid. Image by PhillipWest

Meanwhile, below is a simple but effective TIE fighter design. You can just see this one whooshing into battle, while John Williams’ classic score booms out of the stereo!

TIE fighter. Image by Steel Wool

Here is yet another X-wing design, and in this case the main body of the ship is made from a folded X. The potential variety of designs available is almost endless, while the range of inspiration is equally stupendous.

X-wing. Image by sparr0

If you’ve been inspired to get to work, there are numerous guides on the Internet that will give you detailed instructions about how to make your own origami figures. Star Wars Origami offers an array of designs, while Chris Alexander will have a bantha (think a large, elephant-sized creature with curly horns) in your hands in no time. On the other hand, The Origami Resource Centre can give you instructions on everything from AT-ATs to Y-wings and, if you’re willing to spurn George Lucas’s creations, you could even build a Borg cube. Perish the thought!

Made from recycled materials and running on renewable energy, the astonishing buildings known as Earthships offer an extraordinarily green form of domestic living. Perhaps the strangest of them all is the Nautilus Earthship, a design based on the Fibonacci sequence, as seen in the Nautilus sea shell!

Image used by permission of Earthship

In the Fibonacci series, each number is the sum of the two that preceded it. What this means is that when mapped as a grid it forms an endless spiral — a form seen throughout nature, whether in sea shells, sunflower heads or artichoke flowers. Derived from this is the Golden Ratio, employed by artists and architects to achieve aesthetically pleasing compositions, which have included mankind’s greatest works of art.

Image used by permission of Earthship

The Nautilus Earthship, built in 1995 in New Mexico, took its inspiration from this form, embodying the beauty, wonder and interrelation of nature. In fact, the Earthships, built from unwanted materials and running on sustainable power, are constructed so that their inhabitants will have almost no impact on their environment. It is a structure that adapts the needs of its inhabitants to suit those that the planet can amply provide for.

Image used by permission of Earthship

The creators of the Nautilus explain on their website: “We must realize that we, the users of the vessel (the home), are part of the vessel. This is much the same as we, the users of the earth, are part of the earth. The Earthship is a participant in the prevailing systems of planet earth. It causes no conflict, no stress, no depletion, no trauma to the planet earth.

Image used by permission of Earthship

“Just as the human body is a result of the various systems that support it — (circulatory systems, nervous systems, respiratory systems, etc….) so must the Earthship be a product of the systems that support it. In view of this, we have made the Earthship systems both understandable and available to the common everyday human.”

Image used by permission of Earthship

The Earthships are, in fact, surprisingly cheap. Because of the way they run, living costs are extremely inexpensive while the materials with which they are built are secondhand — however, they are built in such a way as to be extremely sturdy and hence require little maintenance.

An annotated diagram of a Global Model Earthship. Image used by permission of Earthship

The basic building blocks of the Earthships are recycled rubber car tires, which are packed with compacted earth and sealed in steel-belted rubber to form thick, solid walls. Also used in the process are bottles and cans, while shredded plastic is used alongside gravel in the sewage systems.

Image used by permission of Earthship

The building catches rain water and allows it to be used up to four times. All the energy needed for the house is captured by solar panels and wind turbines, while all sewage produced can be treated and reused for food production. Through these means the mystery as to how water, electricity and sewage arrive and depart from the home vanishes, reconnecting the inhabitants with the environment — something that the Earthship community calls “direct living,” as people are put back into synchrony with the planet’s rhythm.

Image used by permission of Earthship

Earthships can be placed anywhere in the world, in any climate, and they can be adapted so that they will meet all building codes.

Image used by permission of Earthship

Many of the Earthships are built into the ground, meaning that living in them is comparable to living in a cave. However, whereas a cave is insulated by its mass, the Earthships are also heated by the sun. Unlike most designs, the Nautilus is entirely above ground, as it sits on lava rock. Because of this, it is veneered with straw bales for extra insulation.

Image used by permission of Earthship

In an interview with spiritofmaat.com, Michael Reynolds, the primary architect of the Earthships, described the reactions that the Nautilus receives: “Some people are scared off by the Nautilus. It looks too fairytale and too strange. Some people want just a simple-looking house that makes no statement at all. Some want their house to look like everyone else’s. And for a long time we didn’t care what they looked like — we just wanted them to work.

Image used by permission of Earthship

“But there are quite a few people — more than half — who are moved by the shapes of the Nautilus. It’s a castle. It’s a fairytale. And we have a lot of designs that are like that. It’s not limited, it can go any way you want it to. If you’re trying to cross the ocean in a boat, your main concern is that it will float.”

Perhaps these strange vessels really are the best way to sustainably survive upon the shifting seas of our world.

Sources: 1, 2

Lady GaGa. Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Jason Mecier’s 3D mosaics don’t just illustrate celebrities in recycled junk — incredibly, many of them are actually made from items donated by the celebrities themselves!

Andy Warhol (details left and right). Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Each of Mecier’s pieces is intensely personal to its subject. The discarded objects and unwanted junk he receives have included moldy slippers, anti-itch creams and dirty laundry. Previously, he has worked in materials ranging from pills to junk food, but more routinely he works with items such as broken sunglasses, gum wrappers, jewelry and shoes.

P!nk (details left and right). Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Mecier’s mission is to capture the public image of his subjects and in a sense, his portraits are literally constructed from the recycled detritus of the lives of the celebrities he portrays. The use of donated items transforms the process into a two-way work of communication in which the image is implicitly permitted, encouraged and nurtured by its subject.

Ryan Adams (details left and right). Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Each image takes at least 50 hours to produce, though some take much longer, including the GaGa and Farah Fawcett portraits (top and below, respectively), which each took two months and hundreds of hours of work to complete.

Whatever Happened to Farah? Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

The artist sources his materials from friends, family and fans, and, of course, his subjects. He is a particularly avid collector of secondhand toothbrushes and refrigerator magnets, as well as a host of other things.

Timmy. Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Mecier explained to Dangerous Minds: “There’s something about the process and having a connection or brief relationship with the subject that thrills me. The idea of using their personal belongings as art supplies makes the art piece so personal and one of a kind.”

Phyllis Diller (details left and right). Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

As a child, Mecier would clip pictures of his favorite television programs from the TV guide, collecting them as a scrapbook. Later, when he was in high school, he began to do pencil drawings of record covers, ranging from the Rolling Stones to Olivia Newton-John and Pat Benatar, before later creating psychedelic collages using Charlie’s Angels trading cards and pictures of Florence Henderson from the Wesson Oil ads.

Donald Trump (details left and right). Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

From here, he began creating images out of beans and noodles — and the path to his junk portraits is clear! Mecier, who has no formal art training, has now been working with assemblage mosaics for more than 15 years. If you ever made a pasta painting as a child, you can imagine just how much work he puts into his paintings to make such amazing likenesses.

Parker Posey (details left and right). Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Mecier describes his grandmother, Anita Tollefson, as his greatest mentor. While she would work on paintings, sculptures, collages and stained glass pieces when he was a child, she would set him projects to work on. He recalls: “One of my earliest pieces, is a mosaic made from beans, noodles, rocks and cut bamboo sticks glued on a piece of wood… [Anita] would rather paint on the back of her cigarette cartons than buy a canvas. I learned from her that I can make art out of anything I want to, and that there are no rules.”

Joan Van Ark (details left and right). Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Describing his work, Mecier explains: “For years, I have collected a vast and varied arsenal of trash and trinkets that find their way into my art. I enjoy trying to match the perfect items, colors and themes with the essence of each unique subject. Some fun examples include: Rosie O’Donnell made out of junk food, Snoop Dogg made out of marijuana, Sigmund Freud made out of pills. Sometimes the name suggests the medium. Guess what materials I used to make the following portraits: Condoleezza Rice, Salt-N-Peppa, Kevin Bacon and Dog the Bounty Hunter [that would be rice, salt and pepper, bacon and dog food, respectively].”

Scissor Sisters. Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

“Most people send me anywhere from a shoebox to a trash bag full of things to incorporate into their portraits,” Mecier says. “[Comedian] Phyllis Diller sends me a small box every few months filled with odd things like pinecones, dried up paints, jewelry, eyeglasses and anti-itch ointments. [Model, actress and singer] Barbi Benton sent me an entire U-Haul full of very personal keepsakes like prom queen crowns, platform shoes, Hee-Haw overalls, sunglasses, jewelry — and even the retainer she wore in high school!”

White Stripes posters. Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Mecier’s artwork has been widely circulated, and many have been featured as concert posters, including the image of P!nk, in its poster form below right. As well, a poster for Conan O’Brien’s stand-up tour can be seen below left.

Conan O’Brien and P!nk posters. Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Mecier, who lives and works in San Francisco, still hopes to one day work with celebrity artists Marilyn Manson, Yoko Ono and Jane Seymour.

Chris Rock and Peaches posters. Image used by permission of Jason Mecier.

Jason Mecier currently has an exhibition with Adam J. Ansell, titled “We Like To Watch TV” at the San Francisco Glama-Rama (304 Valencia St., 415.861.4526), which runs from August 1 to September 30, 2010. More of his work can be found here.

A Texas artist, Alyce Santoro, introduced the idea of taking the tape and knitting it into sheets of fabric. Once she successfully produced a few articles of clothing, Designtex, a manufacturer, worked with her to develop a sustainable fabric made from unwanted cassette tape. One of the best aspects of cassette tape fabric is its durability, which makes it very useful for drapes, throw pillows, wall coverings and upholstery. There have been talks about creating furniture from the tape specifically designed for outdoor use.

Another New York designer, Julio Cesar, caught on to the innovative idea and combined audio cassette tape with natural fiber threads. The primary article he creates is neckties, made from 50% cassette tape and 50% thread. The end result is a stiff yet flexible necktie that comes in various earth tone colors ranging from browns to various grays.

This concept inspires people to think out of the box and use innovation for items that seem useless. Instead of throwing away the boxes of old stuff you have lying around your home, think about creative ways to reuse it. If you know how to knit, try to find some old cassettes and knit the fabric together to make your own creation.

Old blue jeans can be remade into your new living room rug.

Get hands-on with home goods

Quilting is not just for old ladies! Old clothing and other fabrics can be cut into squares and saved for a special recycled quilt. A simple tutorial at Craft Stylish shows how to make a quilt from old bed sheets. Condo Blues shows instructions for amateur quilters to make a quilt from old T-shirts. If you aren’t in need of a new blanket or quilt, you could also make a quilted shower curtain and brighten up your bathroom. This braided rug at Frugal Veggie Mama is made from used denim jeans. Old drapes or sheets can be turned into pillow shams.

If you’ve never sewn before, dinner napkins are about as easy as it gets. By sewing cloth into a simple square, you can create dinner napkins (or even kitchen rags) from used fabric. There’s a phenomenally simple tutorial at Curbly.

Have an iPad, iPod or eBook reader?

If you own of any of these products, you can make a protective upcycled case from a number of items. P.S. – I made this shows readers how to make an iPad case from a travel pillowcase (inspired by Oscar de la Renta’s chic iPad clutches). If you have an old sweater you were going to take to Goodwill, revamp it into an iPad sleeve with this Curbly tutorial.

Upcycle your clothes to make new clothes and accessories

Megan Neilson has a cool braided headband tutorial (no sewing needed). Over at P.S. – I made this, there are instructions on a DIY one-shoulder ruffle T-shirt, a new look for your old stockings, and how to turn a T-shirt into a scarf with just a pair of scissors. Transform your old fabric into a fabric flower and adorn your favorite shirt, lamp, sofa pillows and more.

Make it social

I’ve mentioned reuse parties before, but if you have crafty and creative friends, you could pitch a fabric-swapping party. You could even have a few tutorials on hand so party guests could get ideas for ways to revamp and reuse fabric.

Have you upcycled your old fabrics? If so, what did you make?

Image via hoax-slayer

If you’ve been following the features on our site, you’ll know that pretty much anything can be recycled — from bottle caps and lids to computer parts, scrap metal and other everyday objects. But the recycling fun doesn’t stop at a particular size. Inventive souls have even recycled whole planes or large parts of them. We’ve been scouting for the seven craziest and have found some wacky constructions.

The future of retired airliners used to be quite drab: most of them were taken apart — even the fuselage was chopped up — and the pieces were sold as scrap aluminum. Very few old planes made it into museums — especially not whole airliners. But, then came the ’90s, when old planes were still cheap and some people came up with a great recycling idea: airplane buildings. Here’s our top seven.

7. South Korean Boeing 747 Restaurant

Image: Jon Dunbar via darkroastedblend

This restaurant and bar, converted from a retired Boeing 747, doesn’t look too appealing from the outside. No wonder, because the once bustling establishment now lies vacant. It could sure do with a paint job and some brighter colors to shed that abandoned gas station look.

Image: Jon Dunbar via darkroastedblend

But maybe it’s just the tall apartment buildings all around it, dwarfing the otherwise so majestic metal bird. That’s what you get when you ground planes. Maybe it was simply snapped on a gray day and just needs a bit of sunshine. We do like the interior though:

Image: Jon Dunbar via darkroastedblend

6. The Plane Boat

Image via planeboats

“In case of an emergency landing, please use your seat cushion as a flotation device.” The owner of Plane Boats must have taken this warning to heart and thought, “Wait a minute, why not turn the whole boat into a flotation device?” Though not strictly speaking a home, this plane boat, called Cosmic Muffin, was the brainchild of Dave Drimmer, who created Plane Boats, Inc. in 1994. For the conversion from plane to boat, a plane’s hull, interior and cockpit are completely rebuilt and a new motor is installed. Then, the plane boat can be rented for advertising and promotional purposes like meetings and parties. We like this project because it’s public and anyone can have a piece of the plane.

Image via planeboats

5. The Boeing 727 Lakeside Home

Image: JoAnn Ussery via thedailygreen

This airplane home was just too good to pass by. Just the precarious position by the lakeside in Benoit, MS, makes it a permanent attraction. And, like one of the other homes featured, this old Continental Airlines Boeing 727 was bought by an enterprising woman. Attracted by the low price of just $2,000 (this was way back in 1994) and helped by relatives in the aviation industry, hairdresser JoAnn Ussery bought a used plane after she lost her 1,400-square-foot home in an ice storm. Moving it to her lakeside lot cost another $4,000 and rebuilding it a mere $24,000, because Ussery did most of the work herself. We love the combination of recycling and do-it-yourself!

4. The Jumbo Hostel

Image: Lioba Schneider

As a home away from home while traveling, what could be better than sleeping in a recycled jumbo jet, perhaps dreaming of being hundreds of miles up in the air? That’s what hotelier Oscar Diös might have thought when purchasing a decommissioned 747-200 Jumbo Jet in 2006. Built three decades prior for Singapore Airlines, the plane later served with Pan Am and was last operated by Transjet, a Swedish airline that went bankrupt in 2002 — certainly a turbulent history before the plane was grounded at the entrance to Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport to provide rest for tired travelers.

Image: Fredrik Broman

Here’s a virtual tour and an interview with owner Oscar Diös: Recycled Jumbo Hostel

3. The Recycled Boeing 747 Luxury Home

Image via studioea

Mercedes-Benz dealer Francie Rehwald of Malibu, CA, must have been inspired by dealing with luxury items like the cars she sells on a daily basis: The energetic lady will use every part of a 747 airplane to build her new home — the fuselage, for example, will become an art studio. If you ever wanted to buy one, new airplanes usually cost something in the order of $2 million. Rehwald’s old 747 was a steal: just $40,000. However, there’s a catch: Dismantling the plane, transporting the parts to Malibu and reconstructing a home from them will cost a proud $2 million. However, Rehwald will be able to claim that she has a recycled home like no one else. If the trend catches on, this might be a great way for recession-plagued airlines to make some cash on the side.

Here’s a video of Ms. Rehwald during the building process: California Luxury Boeing Home

2. Hotel Costa Verde

Image via hoax-slayer

This favorite is this Costa Rica abode, an old Boeing 727 converted into living quarters. Well-to-do travelers can rent the two-bedroom apartment, as it is part of the Hotel Costa Verde. We like the way this airplane has been integrated into the lush landscape. Supported by a pillar and with a winding staircase leading to it, this plane has been elevated off the ground once more, if only by a few meters. Unlike the other plane structures featured here, it has also been expanded by a house or porch-like structure, well integrated with the plane’s clipped wings. Here are some images from the inside. Cozy! We’d definitely love to stay there.

Image via hoax-slayer

1. New Jalisco Airplane Library

Image via inhabitat

The New Jalisco Library in Guadalajara, Mexico is our number one because not just one retired plane is recycled here, but the fuselage sections of more than 200 old Boeing 727 and 737 jets. However, the project is still on the drawing board, so we look forward to seeing it. The builder of this ambitious project is company Lot-Ek — readers might know them as recyclers of old shipping containers, used to create beautiful homes and offices. From containers it’s just a small step to planes. So, if anyone can do it, Lot-Ek should be able to make this a reality — we’ll stay tuned.

Image via inhabitat

If you’re inspired to get your own airplane home now, there’s good news: According to Airport Journals, the number of those turning a commercial airliner into a residential home is on the rise. Also, with airline downsizing continuing and more planes going into storage, there should be a steady supply. So, what are you waiting for?

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

Subodh Gupta is a New Delhi-based artist whose installations borrow heavily from his cultural heritage; yet he uses everyday materials that are universally recognizable. “Very Hungry God” (2006) is such an artwork. Made from reused stainless steel containers, it weighs nearly a ton, and at 94.5″ x 59″ x 80.75″, it towers imposingly over viewers.

“Very Hungry God” (2006)

Image via searchit

Whoever has had the chance to go into an Indian kitchen will have noticed two things: Regardless of whether it’s in a one-room chawl apartment or a 10-bedroom bungalow, it will be spotless. And, it will contain a myriad of stainless steel containers, pots and pans, usually neatly stacked on a rack designed especially for them.

Inside the Eglise Saint Bernard church in Paris

Image via clarin

Central to Indian society is the tiffin concept, the same system that the dabbawallas are known for — the brave men who transport thousands of tiffins each day through India’s bustling metropolises. A tiffin is ultimately a lunch box, but one that has been designed to perfection — form and function blended in perfect harmony. Tiffins can have anywhere from one to five compartments (the family version) and are usually round stainless steel boxes held together by a steel contraption stowed in a plastic container to keep them warm.

Next to the Grand Canal in Venice

Image via mustangreporters

The tiffin concept is much more than the practicality it symbolizes; it is about the love that goes into food preparation and the central role it plays in any Indian household. Speaking about borrowing from this most sacred of places in an Indian home (Indian kitchens usually house the family idols and cannot be entered with shoes on), Gupta says: “I am the idol thief. I steal from the drama of Hindu life. And from the kitchen — these pots, they are like stolen gods, smuggled out of the country. Hindu kitchens are as important as prayer rooms.”

Yes, you can touch it

Image via bookofjoy

By using these icons of Indian everyday life, Gupta not only turns them into artworks that are universally readable, but he also points to his roots and tries to highlight a culture that is rapidly transforming. In an interview with ArtNews, Gupta admitted that “my work is about where I come,” adding, “the medium[s] I pick already have their own historical and cultural significance, [I] put them together to create new meanings.”

He has masterfully done that, as the popularity of “Very Hungry God” proves. The sculpture has traveled through European cities like Venice and Paris and even crossed the Atlantic to find a temporary home in Chicago, changing with each cultural context it sits in.

A close-up of “Very Hungry God”

Image via bookofjoy

Pots and pans are universally understandable symbols, as is the skull. Gupta’s talent emerges by bringing the two together, creating a sculpture of such impact that it will make viewers in the East and in the West stop in their tracks.

Subodh Gupta’s “Curry 2″ (2005)

Image via artpublic

Gupta was born in 1964 in a small town called Khagaul in Bihar, India. Growing up in India’s rural north had a huge impact on Gupta’s work. Improvisation started even when Gupta was still in school; with no art teacher, the students were left to educate themselves in the subject. Says Gupta about his early years: “We would all just meet and read books, talk, and make art. We learned from each other.”

Image via saatchi-gallery

Gupta studied art at the College of Art in Patna from 1983 to 1988, focusing on painting. He then moved to New Delhi, where he currently lives and works. His work is varied and includes, apart from painting, sculptures, installations, photography, performance and video. He’s had numerous solo and group exhibitions worldwide.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4

If you think your vision suddenly blurred after looking at the artwork above, don’t worry, nothing is wrong with your eyes. The blurry appearance and fuzzy edges of the bear above are due to the fact that it is made of recycled coat hangers. Yes, that’s right, coat hangers. Scottish artist David Mach, whose amazing 3D matchstick portraits were recently seen here, also has a series of incredible coat hanger sculptures.

This sculpture will literally hook you — “Hooker” (2004):

Image via Jerome de Denoirmont

For each sculpture, Mach first creates a mold as an outline. He then coats it in hard plastic and attaches recycled coat hangers to it — many of them. Mach explains how the technique works on his website: “The work is made up from hundreds of standard metal coat hangers, welded to each other around a plastic positive later removed, and then silver nickel plated.”

Image via Jerome de Denoirmont

The public’s favorite: “Silver Back” (2007):

Image via inventorspot

Though he has also done collages and has gone through traditional arts training, Mach’s heart is set on sculpture. He admits, “Being a sculptor leads everything I do. Every project I take on starts from that point. I believe that an artist must be an ideasmonger responding to all kinds of physical location, social and political environments, to materials, to processes, to timescales and budgets.”

“Spaceman” (2000) rises up every hour:

Image via inventorspot

His fascination with space, for example, led to the coat hanger sculpture of an astronaut (above) as a tribute to Neil Armstrong’s first moon landing. He says about the project: “What does it cost to send a man into space, to make him walk on the moon? I am fascinated by the effort of that, the science, the brainpower, the sheer physical power of the rockets. Billions of dollars spent over decades, invested in the best minds, and here I am, using the cheapest, throwaway nothing object, a coat hanger, to portray that.”

Mach also does larger-than-life portraits with coat hangers. Below is the artist’s brother.

Image via inventorspot

The use of mass-produced, everyday items like coat hangers, matchsticks, bottles, car tires and shoes is a recurring theme in Mach’s work. Some say this obsession goes back to Mach’s student days when he worked in a bottling plant in Leven, U.K., during summers to supplement his income. He explains the influence of that experience: “Mass production processes had their effect on me. You’d be seeing thousands of bottles pass before your eyes every day. I loved the extravagance of that mass production thing.”

Sunimi (2008)

Image: Jerome de Denoirmont

David Mach was born in Methil, Fife, in Scotland in 1956. He studied at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee, U.K., from 1974 to 1979, a time he remembers fondly: “The Dundee teachers were fantastic. I think it was probably the best art school in the world when I was there!“

From 1979 to 1980, Mach studied at the Royal College of Art in London, and already started exhibiting in London, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland and France in the early ’80s. Many more national and international solo and group exhibitions have since followed, as Mach is known for his hectic work patterns and exhibition schedules. In 1989, for example, he had 12 exhibitions or installations in 10 different cities.

Piranesi Urn (1997):

Image via Jerome de Denoirmont

More information, close-ups and 360º rotating images can be found on David Mach’s website.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4