The art of recycling

CEBU, Philippines -  Paintings, illustrations and other creative installations made from recycled or repurposed materials may not always be par for the course when generally talking about art. But just because there's an assumed disconnection between the two doesn't mean that such a union doesn't exist.

The three-day "EcoArt Exhibit 2014" - which ran from September 26 to 28 at Paseo Ciudad at the 1st level of the Ayala Center Cebu - managed to say something about this not-so-often encountered area of the visual arts space, highlighting a selection of works that were crafted from up-scaled recycled "mediums."

Presented by the non-stock and non-profit organization Sustainable Energy and Enterprise Development for Communities (SEED4Com), the creations of Nathan Archival, Michael Ortega, Roland Caballero, Mark Copino, Bart Bartolme, Marc Abuan, Carlo and Katrina Delantar, Lauren Sparks and Roberto Gonzales were the highlights of the show.

Exemplifying how an amalgam of creative and eco-conscious mindsets can lead to visually appealing, interesting and impressive art pieces, EcoArt Exhibit 2014 didn't just feature wall-mountable works, as it also included creative installations made from used plastics, sculptures formed from up-scaled refuse, and fashion accessories made from recycled paper.

Envisioned to be a traveling art exhibition, the show's organizers intend to bring the EcoArt Exhibit to different parts of the metro in the coming months, welcoming new additions to the show as it stops over different parts of Cebu - coming to full circle after a year.

Though the September presentation of the exhibit already closed, the message it imparts remains to be timely and relevant - making it one of Cebu's notable art exhibitions of the year, so far.