20 Works of Art That Will Make You Never Want to Throw Away Your Trash

Image via Complex Original

Washed Ashore, a traveling installation at the San Francisco Zoo, features sculptures made exclusively from ocean debris found at Pacific beaches. The display is sponsored by the Artula Institute for Arts and Environmental Education and is the product of collecting over 11 tons of debris to raise awareness of how pollution affects sea creatures. “I've created something I hope is beautiful and horrifying,” said artist Angela Haseltine Pozzi.

At first glance, the photos in this series look vaguely similar to magnified images of glaciers or a very angular human organ, but they’re really the best pictures of plastic bags that you'll ever see. By using light and colored cardboard Oslo-based photographer Vilde J. Rolfsen creates “a landscape within a plastic bag,” as she calls it on her website. Rolfsen's goal is to beautify one of the world's largest contributors to pollution.

Although he usually works in formaldehyde, Damien Hirst didn’t need his usual chemicals to preserve this work of art. The piece was created in 1994 and is made up of glass, steel, silicone rubber, wood, and medical waste.

Millions of people play the lottery each year, but the number of people who actually win is much, much smaller. Many of these losing lottery tickets end up on the street. Husband and wife duo Lauren Was and Adam Eckstrom decided to create life-size sculptures of luxury items. One of their installations was a dining room made of $70,000 worth of lotto tickets. Some of their other works include a Lamborghini, a remote control yacht, and a chandelier.

Tim Noble and Sue Webster have produced numerous shadow art pieces using different materials, from trash to sex toys. It’s incredible what they can make literally using garbage.

Justin Gignac made Garbage of New York City after being challenged by a coworker about the importance of packaging. The fact that people will buy Original Garbage for $50 and Limited Edition Garbage for $100 proves that packaging is the only thing that matters these days. His impeccable design actually makes us want to buy a box of trash.

This work is actually a recreation of a stepped-on Starbucks cup that was carved out of wood and painted to look exactly like the real thing. Tom Pfannerstill is extremely skilled in making wooden recreations that are “subtle reminders of the temporal nature of all things.”

This mixed-media work by Dan Colen might look like the bottom of a trashcan, but it’s actually an incredible piece. Colen is known for his range of sculptural and painted works that are sure to entice anyone, from a child to an expert art critic.

This site-specific installation was placed on the Yamuna River in Delhi in response to the constant waste and sewage pollution that the river endures. The work is made out of plastic bottles, LED lights, and a metal frame. Waqif’s goal was to recreate the persona of a river goddess coming back through the use of new age technology.

Daniel Rozin bent the rules of physics with his Trash Mirror No. 3. He transformed regular bits and pieces of trash into a large cohesive plane where viewers can see their reflections. The mirror features 500 pieces of trash and is part of a series that was commissioned to debut at the Volta NY art fair.

Artist Oscar Murillo's somewhat unorthodox process includes dirt, tape, and spray paint. It’s incredible how much his work sells for when it’s made up of such base materials.

This audacious sculpture simply utilizes two New York City garbage cans, morning glory plants, and soil. Of course your artwork can’t be dubbed avant-garde unless the price tag matches, so this beauty can be purchased for $7,500-10,000.

Vik Muniz is known for creating incredible pieces of art from bits of discarded material. He often uses trash to mimic famous works of art.

Jane Perkins has mastered the ability to re-create historical works of art using only household items. Perkins' The Starry Night is pretty much an identical replica of Van Gogh's work of the same name except she uses items such as LEGOs, beads, toy dinosaurs, buttons and many other elements in her version. Perkins has also recreated Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, Van Gogh's Waterlilies, Johannes Vermeer's Girl With The Pearl Earring, and many more.

Instead of recycling cans, Kim Alsbrooks found a pretty cool way to repurpose them. She first started her project entitled “My White Family Trash” while living in the South after being displeased with the prevailing beliefs, especially when it comes to class distinction. By painting the faces of distinguished figures on used cans, she attempts to bridge the gap between the classes.

After the floppy disk was ousted, who would have ever thought we would see such a large collection of computer hardware in one place. On the other hand this has got to be one of the coolest chairs ever created, so cool that Lady Gaga had a photo shoot with the chair while promoting her ARTPOP album.

Caldwell uses semi-antique elements to create this functional table. The table may be a bit elementary, but let's face it, what better use do you have for all those blocks you had as a kid? The piece was made to inspire children to utilize the items they have around them to create.

This huge installation was featured on Governor's Island during the summer of 2013 for “FIGMENT,” a summer-long exhibition. The piece features 53,780 recycled bottles, the same number of bottles thrown away in New York City every hour, and boasts an open interior where guests can enter and enjoy the light and color filtering through the plastic cloud.

Wang Zhiyuan created this giant tornado of plastic waste to represent the immense amount of trash in his hometown and surrounding areas of Beijing. The piece is 36 feet tall and really puts the increasing issue of waste into perspective.

This linear wall installation by 2x4 is a digitally printed piece that features bits of discarded trash combined in a vibrant, neon pattern. The piece can also be disjoined and rearranged to form alternate shapes.