Monday, October 18, 2010

'vortex plastica' - Spaceworks Tacoma

'vortex plastica'       Barbara De Pirro

Pulled from a vast resource of materials this sculptural installation was created using ‘hundreds’ of reclaimed plastic bags, bottles and caps,
tirelessly crocheted, woven, wired and tied
to form a series of metaphorical vortexes.

'vortex plastica'      Barbara De Pirro
‘The inspiration behind the piece is a dire one:
it has the power to attract, delight, surprise and repel (when it is discovered what the material is), in short order. No wonder – like a figment from a nightmare, vortex plastica was inspired by the North Pacific Gyre, which carries an enormous and deadly “garbage patch” of plastics and refuse that is perpetually locked in its ocean currents.

The gyre’s huge, floating island of man-made debris, mostly plastics, is an environmental catastrophe for marine and bird
as well as human life.’*

On view at
Spaceworks Tacoma
912 Broadway
(directly across from the Pantages Theatre)

Through February 2011, all hours


Spaceworks Tacoma is a joint initiative of the City of Tacoma, Shunpike, and Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber of Commerce

Funding for this project was made possible in part by Spaceworks Tacoma and Artist Trust Grants for Artist Projects (GAP).

Special thanks to
 Antonia Xavie De Pirro & Phil Griffen for your assistance
* Lisa Kinoshita - Arts Writer, Spaceworks Tacoma