Venture inside Recology, a 47-acre Recycling and Transfer Center located in San Francisco, CA, and you’ll be immersed in a churning, ever-changing landscape where detritus from all over the city is sorted, recovered, and processed. This metropolis of junk, otherwise known as “the dump,” is home to one of the most coveted Artist in Residence (AIR) programs since 1990. Operating with the belief that art plays a unique role in educating and inspiring the public, Recology offers artists an opportunity to make artwork from discarded materials. Armed with safety gear and a shopping cart, artists have scavenging privileges in the Public Reuse and Recycling Area — what most artists refer to as “The Big Store” — to recycle and reclaim the discarded waste as reimagined art objects.

Reclaimed: The Art of Recology, presents a fascinating survey of 33 artists who were selected to participate in Recology’s unique Artist-in-Residence program. This eclectic exhibition of work created from unwanted materials encourages viewers to perceive “trash” in a new light.

Featuring approximately 50 objects, the artwork in Reclaimed is varied, unusual, yet familiar: from paintings produced with recycled house paint to tapestries made from used ties, shirts, and other fabrics, to sculptural vases crafted from Ethernet and coaxial cables. The hybrid concoctions are highly creative and mind-blowing in execution and form. Through introspective, playful, and highly original explorations, these artists reveal the hidden stories our rubbish tells us about ourselves and our relationship with the world.

On view at Irving Archives and Museum February 18 through April 28, 2024.

Reclaimed: The Art of Recology was organized by Bedford Gallery at the Lesher Center for the Arts, Walnut Creek, CA.

Photo credits: Courtesy of Recology San Francisco Artist in Residence Program.

Jamil Hellu, Toys, 2014, digital pigment print, 31 1/8 x 25 1/8 in.

Andrew Junge, Pandora's Box, 2005, neon, toolbox, 13.75 x 19.25 x 11.5 in.