upcycled art

Can Guru

(Symbiosis 2013)

Made from 100 % upcycled materials, the Can-Guru was an interactive aluminum can receptacle. Festival goes were encouraged to recycle their cans by either throwing their cans into the creatures mouth or pouch. Using a Kangaroo was a nod to aluminum mining in Australia. The piece included a folder outlining the 'journey of an aluminum can', which often goes around the world multiple times before landing in a consumers had in the US. Thanks to Waste Busters for the sponsorship of this piece.

The Crown of Trash Queen is comprised of the best of Malaika's personal M.O.O.P (Matter Out Of Place ie. litter) over a few year period of traveling and working zero waste on the West Coast festival circuit (2012-2015 approx).

"I can trace individual bits of garbage to certain places and moments.The plastic sunflower at the peak of the crown I dug out of a sandstone cliff in my hometown, Trabuco. The wonder woman sticker holding a severed Trump head was found stuck to a random piece of cardboard on Haight Ashbury, SF.

I look at this painting/assemblage work and am reminded of dozens of events-reggae concerts, bluegrass festivals and dubstep parties. This painting is a story of that journey, a combination of blingy garbage made into a reminder of the trash imprints we leave behind. This piece is a combination of all of those little pieces of microtrash I find along the way.

The figure in the painting is both aware of the tidal wave of crap in he wake that is barreling in her future. She attempts to find peace despite awareness of the mounting rubbish heap. In many ways this is a self portrait of my emotional state while working zero waste at festivals."

Trash Queen

Trash Treasure Tree of Contemplation

(The Bounce 2012)

"This was the origin piece for Dirty Trashy Mamas. It was as if the sculpture formed the troupe itself.

I had been working at Belden Town with the zero waste crew Waste Busters for a couple of Summers. I always marveled at the things we would find on the ground and coming through the sorting table after an event. With the eyes of an artist I would always keep a box of objects aside that I thought were unique or had artsy potential. We worked such arduous hours that the objects often were landfilled for time sake (I also was living out of my truck so storing boxes of festival trash was not an option).

The act of picking up and sorting garbage at the festival over the Friday and Saturday became a performance art piece. While displaying the shrine of disposable overconsumption at the Sunday sunrise set, a small circle of new age festival goes stood around the Trash Treasure Tree in silence. The collection of cigarette butts and whippet crackers allowed the community to consider how they were 'trashing' both themselves and the planet."