Evil Plastic

“EVIL PLASTIC”
an “Art from Detritus” exhibit
Curated by Vernita Nemec
March 27-April 21, 2018
Reception: Thursday, March 29, 6-8PM
Lynn Neuman & Artichoke Dance Company, Thursday April 5th, 7 PM
Art Talk, Saturday April 21st, 4pm

Denise Adler Catherine Armistead Annaliese Bischoff Ellen Burnett Wendy Cloud
Merill Comeau Harry Delorme May DeViney Rachel Green Julia Healy
Ed Herman Halona Hilbertz Michelle Lougee Gail Mitchell Lisa Moren
Lynn Neuman Janet Nolan Katherine Powers Carol Quint Helaine Soller Jenifer R Stern Courtney Lee Weida Helen Zajkowski

Chelsea NY: Viridian Artists is pleased to present the exhibit “EVIL PLASTIC”, featuring fine art made primarily from plastic trash. The heart of this exhibit is the message of the three R's: Reduce/Reuse/Recycle. The exhibit will open March 27th and continues through April 21st with a reception March 29, 6-8pm, a dance performance April 5th at 7PM & an Art Talk Saturday April 21st at 4PM. 10% of sales of these artworks in this exhibit will be given to an environmental organization fighting the evils of plastic.
“EVIL PLASTIC” attempts to say it straight: plastic trash has come to be a primary force in the destruction of our environment. The ocean is filled with gyres of plastic floating like islands and harboring dangers that lure fish, birds and sea mammals with a promise of food that has no nourishment. Coral reefs are being chocked by plastic debris. It is up to humans to master their creative energies to devise solutions to this eminent threat of annihilation.
Slowly we are beginning to develop compostable plastic or recycling & upcycling these materials into useful objects but will we do so quickly enough?. In the North Pacific Ocean, there are 6x more plastic debris than plankton. We have an island in the middle of the North Pacific Gyre, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch composed mostly of plastic. 10% of the plastic we use yearly ends up in the ocean.
Artists have long used trash as a medium but their message in this exhibit is clear. All these works are created primarily from plastic debris. Some of the works speak through the mere use of these materials, others are more decisive in their message of the evil of plastic if left untethered.
Since 1994, the changing groups of artists in these environmentally conscious exhibits, have opened a dialogue through their art making, about the importance of protecting the environment. “Art from Detritus”, or art from waste, was conceived by artist/ curator Vernita Nemec, that same year in Portland Oregon during the annual conference of the National Recycling Coalition (NRC) and presented in the lobby of a recycled Sears Roebuck building, the corporate head quarters for municipal waste & recycling there. Since then, the exhibit has re-occurred with funding from the Kauffman Foundation, the Puffin Foundation and sponsorship by the NRC. Past Detritus exhibitions have occurred in
Pittsburgh, Kansas City MO, Phoenix AZ, Turners Falls MA and NYC. See more information and images of past Detritus shows at www.ncognita.com.
Vernita Nemec, a.k.a. Vernita N'Cognita, is a visual & performance artist, a curator, the director of Viridian Artists and formerly the Director of Artists Talk on Art (ATOA). She is also on the board of Advisors of ATOA & Soho20.

Gallery hours Tuesday through Saturday 12-6PM
For further information please contact the gallery at 212-414-4040, viridianartistsinc@gmail.com or view our website: viridianartists.com