Sometimes, social media does what it is supposed to do and it connects you to real people who are really doing some really awesome things. I connected with @themoorefamilyfolkart on Instagram a few weeks ago because I appreciated their up-cycled art. When we realized that we lived about 20 minutes away from one another, SunStars, Stellan and I were invited over to their home studio where we got to meet Alan and two of his 5 children, all of whom contribute to the process of creating these works of art.
Their studio is set up in the garage, which has been split in half by a partition wall. On one side of the wall are shelves filled with bits of wood that they have largely found on the side of the road. There is a planer and other tools that are used to create the bases, backings, and frames for their art. When you go through the door; however, it is seriously a whole new world.
The entire wall is embellished with vintage pop and beer cans and it is nothing short of a masterpiece. What's even cooler about it is that it evolves as cans are employed and worked into art pieces. On either end of the studio are organization systems for holding scraps of cans, bottle caps, and other found supplies to be turned into masterpieces. There are two separate workstations, upon which all of the members of the Moore family have contributed in some way to the works that are in-progress. From the youngest son sorting bottle caps to the oldest daughter using pieces of cans (sorted and cut by other family members) to make her very first longhorn, everyone plays a role in the creative process.
In speaking with daughter Emma about if she'd ever want to create and sell her own pieces, she said that she could and dad, Alan, would definitely let her use the materials, she enjoys the collaborative feeling that goes along with their art. Because everyone contributes, seeing the finished work always feels truly rewarding. As a middle school teacher who does not often encounter this work ethic or appreciation for collaboration, it was an absolute breath of fresh air.
It was really cool to see how the kids know about all of the steps in the process of creating art. They know about their dad finding these cans through swaps with other artists or collectors, they know about how everything is stored, they even go out on day-long excursions to drop off finished art to all of the shops in which their pieces are sold. Son, Aiden, told me that when he talks to his friends about how they earn money, his way of earning cash is definitely the coolest.
I have to agree! The creative process and degree of teamwork here makes me happy and the fact that the majority of the materials used are up-cycled truly causes my heart to smile!
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