The term ‘upcycling’ was first used by Reiner Pilz in an interview in 1994. He said, "What we need is upcycling, where old products are given more value, not less". Upcycling is the process of taking low quality waste or recyclable materials and producing something of greater value or of artistic merit.
There is now an established history of artists who have taken what would otherwise be refuse, and transformed it into major works of art. Famous examples of this are by Kurt Schwitters, Joseph Cornnell, Rauschenberg, Picasso, Braque, Louise Nevelson and Anthony Earnshaw. The materials used by the artists have been taken from items that would otherwise have been consigned to the waste bin, and they have made remarkable artworks from them. Members of the LSA are showing the results of taking up this challenge and responding in a new series of artworks.
Jo Sheppard, A Good Catch
