Student Turns Fountain into Eco-Conscious Art
A University of Kansas student uses about 1,000 water bottles to integrate arcs onto the currently inactive fountain.
December 2008 Web
By Matt Hirschfeld
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The artwork, called "Frozen Assets," was made from about 1,000 plastic water bottles.
Photo courtesy The University of Kansas
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Matthew Farley, a sculpture major at the University of Kansas, wanted to bring attention to the United States’ bottled water consumption with his “Frozen Assets” sculpture.
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The sculpture is a temporary addition to the Chi Omega fountain, which is on the west side of KU’s main campus and was dedicated in April 1955.
A creator of stainless steel water bottles, EcoUsable Inc., sponsored the artwork. Farley also worked with KU’s recycling program to research water bottle usage among KU students and environmental effects that result.
KU has collected 10.27 tons of PET (plastic #1), which is what most plastic bottles are made from, in the 2007-2008 school year. The total number of tons of recycling collected for the same year was 542.4 tons.
More about eco-art
• See what happens when a photographer and architect team up to make a recycled art exhibit that travels the world.
• Check out Natural Home managing editor Jessica Kellner's beautiful, homemade recycled art project.
• Energy Star's "Recycle My Old Fridge" art contest yielded some creative artwork. See for yourself!