Upgrading Upcycling
If you enjoy art which reflects and challenges our preoccupations, then look no further than American Korean artist Jay Sae Jung Oh, whose works nail the zeitgeist beautifully. Her preoccupation is a familiar one - the accumulation of everyday junk, thrown away more often because they are unwanted rather than unusable; a reflection of our wasteful throwaway culture and our obsession with the new.
Jay Sae Jung Oh collects discarded items and binds them together with meticulously wound leather strips to create highly sculptural objects. These are created with distinct functions in mind - a stool, a floor light or perhaps a throne-like chair. The use of leather strips, with their hypnotic swirls and ribbed texture, lends the objects an air of luxury. Look closer, however, and you will see glimpses of the discarded objects. Mundane, everyday items, once used and perhaps loved, then discarded by their owners, now rejuvenated into precious objects with new functions, immortalised into artistic statements on the wastefulness of our consumerist culture.
Links
Product Inspiration
For furniture with an artistic touch try the My Beautiful Backside Sofa from Moroso, the Couture Armchair from BD Barcelona Design and the LCI4 Low Commode from Jiri Krejcirik.
Make a grand impression with artistic lights such as the Candela Suspension Light from LZF, the Turciù Bonsai Table Lamp from Catellani & Smith and the Frame Suspension Light from Utu.
Accessories with a sculptural touch can make a strong impact, for example the Bolanzas Hanger from Agrippa, the Tornado Vase from Ghidini 1961 and the Bloom Vase from 101 Copenhagen.
