The 25 Best Artworks Made From Trash

From trash to treasure.

May 10, 2013
Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

These pieces of art are trash, but in a good way. Think about it—we are pretty liberal with the things we throw away, so why not recycle our waste into something useful, whenever possible? This list goes to show you that literally everything can be turned into something useful and cool. That six-pack you slugged back last weekend? It could be a metallic bird over night. That old keyboard you lost interest in playing? It could be a mosaic of Tupac. 

This is what we call creative ingenuity, and we decided to celebrate it with this list of The 25 Best Artworks Made From Trash. As they say, one man's trash is another man's treasure.  

RELATED: The 25 Coolest Portable Housing Options on the Market
RELATED: 25 Artists to Watch in 2013

25. Recycled Orchestra

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

25. Recycled Orchestra by Nicolas Gomez / Favio Chavez, 2013

Medium: Everything

A garbage picker named Nicolas Gomez brought a piece of trash that resembled a violin to musician Favio Chavez and started what is known as the Landfill Harmonic. Cateura, Paraguay is one of the poorest towns in South America, and it is there that they are trying to build a set of instruments from garbage in order to start a children's orchestra. Look out for the documentary called Landfill Harmonic coming soon.

image via

24. Doors

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

24. Doors by Choi Jeong-Hwa, 2009

Medium: Wooden door installation

This project was created in Seoul, South Korea in 2009. Artist Choi Jeong-Hwa used over 1,000 old doors to erect this ten-story installation.

image via

23. Cloud

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

23. Cloud by Caitlind r.c. Brown, 2012

Medium: Lightbulb installation

Although this installation contains a few working lightbulbs, it is created from mostly burnt out, discarded ones to produce a pretty awesome cloud figure. The installation also allows people to pull strings, which can make the cloud flicker.

image via

22. Bottle Cap Mosaic

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

22. Bottle Cap Mosiac by El Anatsui, 2013

Medium: Bottle cap installation

Nigeria-based artist, El Anatsui, creates fascinating tapestries by hammering out metallic bottle caps and binding them together to form a large piece of art.

image via

21. Button Portraits

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

21. Button Portraits by Zac Freeman, 2013

Medium: Buttons, dice, legos, and bread clips collage

American artist Zac Freeman created these stunningly realistic portraits using little plastic bits like bottle caps and buttons. He glued them onto a wooden canvas and sorted them by color, ultimately creating recognizable faces.

image via

20. Beer Canimals

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

20. Beer Canimals by Macaon, 2012

Medium: Aluminum can sculpture

Japanese artist and avid beer drinker, Macaon, decided to put a couple back and design some cool shit. These awesome animal beer can sculptures are the result of a drinking habit and a creative mind. If you find yourself possessing both of those things, the sky is really the limit.

image via

19. Animal Sculptures

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

19. Animal Sculptures by Sayaka Ganz, 2012

Medium: Plastic forks, spoons, springs, and recycled plastic sculpture

Ganz uses household objects as the basis of her work. She cites her belief in the Japanese Shinto as a major influence on her art, which claims that all objects have deep spirits and weep inside the trash bin at their lack of use. Whatever motivates you, right?

image via

18. Keyboard Portraits

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

18. Keyboard Portraits by Work by Knight, 2012

Medium: Keyboards

Work by Knight uses keys from recycled keyboards to make mosaic-like portraits, including ones of Dr. Dre, Tupac, and Jay-Z. Because honestly, what else are you supposed to do when you give up on your piano ballad meets rap career?

image via

17. Metro Card Mosiacs

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

17. Metro Card Mosiacs by Nina Boesch, 2012

Medium: Metro card collage

German artist Nina Boesch created a stunning series of mosiacs made from recycled metro cards. Her work features legendary New York landmarks like the above photo of Yankee Stadium.

image via

16. Honey Boo Boo

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

16. Honey Boo Boo by Jason Mercier, 2012

Medium: Soda cans, chicken nuggets, pigs feet, cardboard boxes, eyelashes, and cheese ball collage

Primarily known for his mosaics, artist Jason Mercier created this portrait of reality television star Honey Boo Boo using a bunch of trash cartons from different objects. His comment is pretty obvious, making us think he'd rather do many things than watch her television show...like make trash art out of her, to start.

image via

15. MilkyWave

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

15. MilkyWave by Aidia Studio, 2012

Medium: Yogurt can light installation

Created by Aidia Studios for the 2012 Bejing Design festival, this light installation uses over 1,000 empty yogurt cans to make something wonderful and beautiful known as the MilkyWave.

image via

14. Trash Orcas

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

14. Trash Orcas by Unknown, 2011

Medium: Garbage bag sculpture

These trash wales were seen diving through dumpsters in 2011. They're made from trash bags and paper, making us feel very desperate to know who the artist is. Speak up!

image via

13. Can Cushion

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

13. Can Cushion by BRC Design, 2012

Medium: Soda can furniture

Design firm BRC Design uses recycled soda cans to make furniture. We can't imagine this would be too comfortable, but at least it would look cool.

image via

12. Catch & Release

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

12. Catch and Release by Johnston Foster, 2010

Medium: Bicycle spokes, PVC, marbles, and kiddie pool sculpture

This tiger is part of Johnston Foster's exhibit "Catch & Release," which was featured at New York's RARE gallery in 2010 and showcased a multitude of recycled materials.

image via

11. Bleacher Trash

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

11. Bleacher Trash by Matthew Yake, 2012

Medium: Photography

Photographer Matthew Yake photographs trash he found around school bleachers in a simple but beautiful way.

image via

10. The Hulk

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

10. The Hulk by Jeff Ballard, 2012

Medium: Cardboard boxes installation

Jeff Ballard created a couple of superhero portraits out of old boxes of mac & cheese. This one is of the Hulk; others include Captain America and The Thing from Fantastic Four.

image via

9. Cow Car

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

9. Cow Car by Miina Äkkijyrkkä, 2011

Medium: Used car parts sculpture

Artis Miina Äkkijyrkkä has been working with cows for over fifty years. She created these giant cow sculptures from used car parts and put them all over a farm in Finland. Just so you know, they don't make milk.

image via

8. Trash Sculptures

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

8. Trash Sculptures by Evan Robarts, 2012

Medium: Mops, Brooms, Pianos, Chairs, and TVs sculpture

Brooklyn-based sculptor Evan Robarts creates absolutely stunning sculptures out of a lot of "junk." He's another artist improving the way we see the objects around us.

image via

7. Trash Miniatures

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

7. Trash Miniatures by Kim Alsbrooks, 2012

Medium: Cups and cans sculpture

Kim Alsbrooks started her series "White Trash" while living in the South. These crushed cans painted with portraits are an attempt at social commentary on class distinction.

image via

6. Scrap Metal Animals

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

6. Scrap Metal Animals by Vik Muniz, 2013

Medium: Scrap metal sculpture

Vik Muniz is famous for creating art out of trash, and this is a series of animals he created from scrap metal. The pieces were recently displayed in an exhibition at the Armory in New York.

image via

5. Litterbugs

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

5. Litterbugs by Mark Oliver, 2012

Medium: Books, clocks, and eyeglasses sculpture

Litterbugs is a series of insects created from trash such as old clocks, books, and other household items that Mark Oliver took from his garage. These are pretty neat, especially if you're into insects.

image via

4. Microcosmic Park

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

4. Microcosmic Park by Gregory Euclide, 2012

Medium: Plastic bottles, sponges, and paper installation

Artist Gregory Euclide made Microcosmic World Park out of trash he found in Central Park. It resembles an amusement park in nature, making a casual viewer unaware that it was made out of trash.

image via

3. Angel

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

3. Angel by Khalil Chishtee, 2012

Medium: Trash bags, grocery bags, and plastic sheet sculpture

This piece was created by artist Khalil Chishtree and is made from trash bags, grocery bags, and plastic sheets, which she wove together to create the silhouette of an angel.

image via

2. Bird's Nest

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

2. Bird's Nest by Him Hollerman, 2013

Medium: Caution tape installation

Artist Kim Hollerman created a bird's nest made from multicolored strands of caution tape, which recently premiered at the NY Studio Gallery as part of their TRASH exhibit.

image via

1. Bag Beehive

Not Available Interstitial
Image via Complex Original

1. Bag Beehive by Pascale Marthine Tayou, 2013

Medium: Plastic bag installation

Pascale Marthine Tayou, an artist from Cameroon, is well-known for reusing everyday objects. He created this large installation from plastic bags, which debuted at Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome earlier this year.

image via

Art & DesignArt

Latest in Style