Art + Activism: Aurora Robson

Over the summer, my Mom and I took a trip out to Southampton to walk around, enjoy the lovely weather, and peruse the charming shops on Main Street. While window shopping at Ralph Lauren, Aerin, and the other cute stores, we were surprised to discover a little art museum/gallery space called The Southampton Center. Without knowing what to expect, we decided to take a peek. Upon walking in we were confronted with a blank wall that had an unusual sculpture suspended from the ceiling in front of it:

Aurora Robson | York Avenue
Wasn’t too sure what it was, but I admired the piece and found it to be strange and pretty. We then continued around the wall, and found this hiding behind it:
Aurora Robson | York Avenue
It was a “wow” moment. I just stood there marveling at the explosion of colors and shapes before me, which I completely wasn’t expecting. It was like wandering around in some sort of strange dream, and I absolutely loved it.
Aurora Robson | York Avenue

Aurora Robson | York Avenue

It turned out to be the work of a New York City based artist named Aurora Robson, who started off as a painter and then moved into three dimensional artworks. The sculptures are made from pieces of plastic debris, including bottles and bottle caps. On her website, Aurora speaks about creating these pieces based off of nightmares that she was having. I find it really inspiring that she was able to take something frightening and unpleasant and turn it into something so arresting and beautiful.

Aurora Robson | York Avenue

Aurora Robson | York Avenue

At first I thought the pieces were just beautiful in and of themselves, but after a little reading I discovered that there’s an important message behind Aurora’s work. Besides being an incredibly talented artist, she is also an environmental activist (“subtle yet determined”, as she phrases it) and the founder of Project Vortex, an international group of artists who participate in environmental clean-up efforts and utilize the collected debris (mostly plastic) in their artwork. The proceeds from these pieces are then funneled back into efforts to clean up our water sources. How cool is that? To take useless, damaging garbage, and transform it into something beautiful-I’m just in awe of Aurora’s dedication to using her talent for a great cause. As if creating beautiful, imaginative art wasn’t enough!

Check out Aurora Robson’s site to see some of the other imaginative and meaningful work she has created out of trash bags, junk mail, plastic bottles, and other waste.

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Photographs via my Iphone

Leave a Comment

  1. Alyssa wrote:

    These are mind blowing–SO COOL!

    Published 10.21.13 · Reply
  2. Nikki wrote:

    Those pieces are really cool! And what a great cause!

    Nikki
    thefashionablewife.com

    Published 10.21.13 · Reply
  3. Holly Kvinge wrote:

    Beautiful! And what a wonderful cause

    Published 10.21.13 · Reply
  4. Majda Mehanovic wrote:

    I love this style of abstract sculpture! I studied abstract expressionism for four years in high school and always understand the beauty and depth that goes into each piece! So glad to see this post! xoxo

    Majda | http://www.classystateofmind.blogspot.com

    Published 10.21.13 · Reply
  5. Rachel wrote:

    Whoa these are awesome!

    Published 10.22.13 · Reply
  6. My thoughts exactly, Rachel!

    Published 10.22.13 · Reply
  7. Thanks Majda! That's so cool that you studied abstract sculpture! You must appreciate these on a whole different level than I do.

    Published 10.22.13 · Reply
  8. I agree, Holly!

    Published 10.22.13 · Reply
  9. I know! I was so impressed when I found out what her thought process was behind the pieces. Very admirable.

    Published 10.22.13 · Reply
  10. I know, you can hardly tell they're plastic. She really transformed the material. I don't think I'm familiar with Dale Chiluly's glass sculptures, I'm going to look them up now. Thanks for letting me know!

    Published 10.22.13 · Reply
  11. I agree Alyssa! I was so blown away.

    Published 10.22.13 · Reply
  12. Griffin @ The Design Itch wrote:

    Amazing what she did with plastic! They sort of remind me of Dale Chihuly's glass sculptures.

    Published 12.1.13 · Reply