Inhabitat has once again proven that they’ve got a sharp eye for fantastic eco-art with a recent feature on artist Mark Langan, who creates art from cardboard. Unlike Chris Gilmour – another cardboard artist previously featured on Inhabitat, who utilizes mostly the smooth side of the material – Langan celebrates the texture of corrugated cardboard, making it the star of his creations. It’s interesting to see such different takes on this recycled art concept. Langan collects the materials for his work from his own neighborhood.
From Inhabitat:
Langan does not use any computer rendering to visualize a project: he sketches it the old-fashioned way, by drawing it out on a piece of paper. Each piece is built through a process of cutting, layering, and sealing with a non-toxic glue. For a more sculptural texture, the artist will run his cardboard through a paper-shredder and make it into a putty with glue and water.
A completely self-taught artist, Langan dedicated himself full-time to his corrugated masterpieces after being laid off from an office job. Some of the pieces are more overt proponents of the green lifestyle than others: one pieces says “Waste: it’s what haste makes” while in another, Uncle Sam declares “I want YOU to recycle” (above). Most of the works, however, are elegantly trimmed celebrations of a cast-off material. It’s the grown-up version of playing with cardboard boxes.
Who would have thought that you could achieve such detailed, textured, creative works of art with a material that most people toss in the trash without a second thought? It just goes to show that with a little creative thinking, we could save mountains of materials from landfills– they’re all useful to somebody.
Link [Inhabitat]
