I am in a panic. It’s my turn to set a challenge and the challenge that I thought I’d set didn’t turn out to be environmentally friendly. So, No. I’ve also been busy with a couple other projects with weekly deadlines. So, What? I’ll repurpose one of my project assignments into a Friendly Friday Challenge!
For the next two weeks the Friendly Friday Challenge is to capture Art in FOUND OBJECTS.
What is Found Object Art?
For a serious definition of this art form, the Tate Museum says
A found object is a natural or man-made object, or fragment of an object, that is found (or sometimes bought) by an artist and kept because of some intrinsic interest the artist sees in it.
Found objects (sometimes referred to by the French term for found object ‘objet trouvé’) may be put on a shelf and treated as works of art in themselves, as well as providing inspiration for the artist. The sculptor Henry Moore for example collected bones and flints which he seems to have treated as natural sculptures as well as sources for his own work. Found objects may also be modified by the artist and presented as art, either more or less intact as in the dada and surrealist artist Marcel Duchamp’s readymades, or as part of an assemblage.
As so often, Picasso was an originator. From 1912 he began to incorporate newspapers and such things as matchboxes into his cubist collages, and to make his cubist constructions from various scavenged materials.
‘Found object – Art Term’ | Tate.org.uk
Animal Head 1951
Tate
A more casual and succinct definition is from MOMA :
An object—often utilitarian, manufactured, or naturally occurring—that was not originally designed for an artistic purpose, but has been repurposed in an artistic context.
‘Found Object’ | MoMa
A great example is the collection of Faces created by Jim Shores.
An even more simple definition, borrowed from any kindergarten classroom is … Arts & Craft time!
Found Objects in Art
In this challenge, I propose a very loose interpretation of Found Object Art. It can be as simple as your children’s macaroni art. Or a travelogue-worthy photo of pictures made from fruits and vegetables. Even street art can be considered found art, especially when everyday objects are found in the art.
Queen Street West (Toronto) 
Boots on a door step (Seoul, South Korea) 
Harvest Portraits (Prague, Czech Republic)
Making Art from Found Objects
In my case, I had to make art from found objects. It was an assignment to make a creature from everyday materials and use it in a little movie. This was an exercise to learn the process and tools for stop motion animation. It was a first attempt, so apologies up front for the rough cut.
Are you inspired? I hope so. I look forward to seeing your Friendly Friday ideas on FOUND OBJECTS.
You have two weeks to publish your response, after which Amanda will pose a new topic. Remember to include a pingback to this post, so that I can find you. Full instructions on Friendly Friday can be found here.
Have fun with this topic!
The Sandy Chronicles 
Here is the second part of my objects of borderline art, enhanced art, trash art and one undecided rug.
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I can always depend on you!
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This is so good to hear.
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Oh, I didn’t find the theme hard at all, Sandy! In fact, I had 40 photos gathered immediately so there will be part 2! I might have taken it a bit broadly, though, as I tend to do. Here are my first 20 found things:
https://manjameximexcessive6.wordpress.com/tag/friendly-friday/
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Sorry, the link above was all-inclusive. 😀 Here is just today’s post:
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Thanks Manja … I did say loose interpretation!
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Such an interesting and unsual and, being honest, hard theme. And your photos beautifully illustrate it.
Here is mine:
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It was hard? but your response is perfect! I loved it.
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It was!! But I’m glad you liked what I came up with 🙂
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I absolutely LOVE the work of Henry Moore. And the Faces Album pulled me in instantly as well. Awesome post!
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You should get a lot of very interesting responses to this challenge. It will be fun to see what turns up.
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Will you be joining Bernadette? Maybe you’ll make Culinary Art with Found Objects in your pantry?! 🙂
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Now that is an interesting idea. Let me work on that.
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Hmm, yummy. Waiting with anticipation.
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What a great collection! And a great topic, too.
Here is what I found a few weeks backs when I was on a trip, about 2 hours north of where I live:https://picturesimperfectblog.wordpress.com/2021/09/10/twinning-towns-twinning-art/
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What an interesting sculpture. It’s one of those pieces whose appeal lies in the details. Thanks for sharing!
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Intriguing topic but it has me stumped at present. I don’t think I have much in my photo archives apart from those I used for an old post that fits the brief perfectly, so I hope you won’t mind be sharing that again: https://www.toonsarah-travels.blog/recycled-spirits-of-iron-ex-nihilo/. I’ve updated my post to include a link but I’m afraid the pingback issue now seems to affect links on both directions so you may not get it 😦
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Ah, but I see it did work – some do, some don’t!
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No problem in re-using an old post Sarah, especially when it fits perfectly. His is a brilliant example of making art from found objects. It’s quite amazing how he constructs such large scale scuptures from parts.
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Thank Sandy 🙂 Dan was an interesting guy to talk to as well, very passionate about what he does and the importance of reusing what we can rather than throwing away.
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A very unusual topic, Sandy. I can’t wait to see what turns up!
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I’m keeping my fingers crossed 😉
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