Found object

Artists can use things they find.

This is called found art. One artist used a wheel and a stool.

Another artist used a glass of water. Some people even use trash from the street.

They can make dresses from things found at the beach. This art makes us look at old things in a new way. It is a very special way to create.

Found art is a way to make art. Artists use items that are not made for art. These items might be everyday things. They might even be trash.

Some artists use things that are not changed at all. Marcel Duchamp called these readymades. He once showed a urinal in a gallery. He called it Fountain.

Another artist, Pablo Picasso, used a printed image of chair caning. He pasted it onto a painting.

Artists also make assemblages. This is when they put many found objects together. Man Ray made an iron with nails in it. It was called Gift.

Some people make junk art. This is art made from discarded things. Marina DeBris makes clothes from trash found at the beach. This is called trashion.

Found art makes us look at the world in new ways. It can make us feel many things. We might feel happy or even a bit sad.

Found art is a way to make something beautiful or interesting using everyday items. These objects are not usually meant to be art. They might be tools, products, or even things people throw away. An artist chooses these items and gives them a new meaning. This can be done by changing the object or just by moving it to a new place.

By doing this, the artist asks us to look at common things in a new way. It can make us feel many things, like joy, sadness, or even surprise.

There are different ways an artist can use a found object. Sometimes they make a "readymade." This is an object that is not changed at all. Marcel Duchamp used this idea to make his famous work called Fountain in 1917. He took a standard urinal from a hardware store and placed it on a pedestal. Other artists make "assemblages." This is when they combine many different objects into one piece. For example, Man Ray made an iron called Gift by adding nails to the bottom of it.

The history of found art goes back a long way. Some people think East Asian scholar's rocks are very early examples. These are rocks found in nature that are shown on small stands. In France, an artist named Alphonse Allais showed a green carriage curtain as art before 1897. This work was part of the Incoherents exhibitions in Paris. Later, Marcel Duchamp perfected the idea of the readymade between 1913 and 1921. He even made a piece called Bicycle Wheel in 1913 by attaching a wheel to a stool.

Many different types of found art exist today. Some artists make "junk art" or "trash art" using discarded items. Marina DeBris makes "trashion," which is fashion made from trash found on beaches. Other artists make "commodity sculpture." This uses mass-produced items like basketballs in a tank, a work by Jeff Koons from 1985.

Even music can use found objects. Musicians use "found sounds" from the natural world to create new songs. This helps people think about big ideas like climate change.

Found art connects to the world we see every day. It shows that art is not just about paint or clay. It can be found in a glass of water or a pile of old clothes. Michael Craig-Martin made a work called An Oak Tree in 1973. He used a glass of water to represent a tree. This shows how an idea can change how we see an object.

Whether it is a rock or a piece of trash, found art invites us to wonder.

A found object, also known as objet trouvé, is a type of art created from items that are not usually considered art materials. These objects often have a non-art function, such as a tool or a household product. The identity of the art comes from the artist's designation and the social history of the item. By selecting these objects, the artist invites the audience to contemplate them in a new way. This process can prompt many different feelings, such as nostalgia, empathy, indifference, or even disgust.

Artists use found objects through several distinct methods. One method involves the "readymade," which refers to completely unaltered everyday objects selected by the artist. Another method is "assemblage," where an artist combines several different found objects into a single work. For example, Jose de Creeft created large-scale assemblages like Picador in 1925 using scrap metal and rubber. Some artists also modify their objects, such as Man Ray, who created the piece Gift in 1921. He attached nails to the underside of an iron, which rendered the tool useless.

There are many specific sub-classifications of this art form. During the Surrealist Exhibition of Objects in 1936, many categories were defined. These included natural objects, mathematical objects, and even Oceanic objects. A more recent variation is "commodity sculpture," which emerged in the 1980s. This style uses commercially mass-produced items arranged in a gallery to focus on marketing and product display. An example is Jeff Koons' 1985 work, Two Ball 50/50 Tank, which features basketballs floating in a glass tank.

The history of found objects includes several important precursors. Some curators believe East Asian scholar's rocks are early examples of this practice. These natural rocks are found in nature and displayed on stands to represent nature. In France, Alphonse Allais created a work before 1897 consisting of a green carriage curtain. This work was exhibited at the Incoherents exhibitions in Paris between 1883 and 1893. Some historians consider this the oldest known readymade and a major influence on later artists.

Marcel Duchamp is the artist most famous for perfecting the readymade concept. He coined the term in 1915 while living in New York. His work Bicycle Wheel, created in 1913, attached a bicycle wheel and fork to a stool. In 1917, he presented Fountain, a standard urinal purchased from a hardware store. He signed the piece with the pseudonym "R. Mutt." This work confounded the art world and challenged the distinction between art and non-art.

Found objects also appear in the form of "trash art" or "junk art." These works use discarded components, often taken literally from the trash. This includes "trashion," which is fashion made from waste. For instance, Marina DeBris creates clothing from trash found on beaches. Other artists, like Paul Yore, use trash to examine excess consumption in society.

This subgenre often carries a social purpose, such as raising awareness about waste.

Beyond visual arts, found objects are used in the field of music. This is a key part of the musique concrète genre, which uses found sounds. Musicians like Björk and Radiohead have incorporated these sounds into their work. Some artists, such as Cosmo Sheldrake, use sounds from natural ecosystems. He suggests that using these soundscapes can help communicate messages about climate change.

The use of found objects remains a subject of debate among critics and the public. In the 1990s, the Young British Artists caused polarized debates in Britain. While museums supported the work, some journalists and the public rejected it. In 1999, the Stuckists group even issued a manifesto against ready-made art. They argued that such work was a "polemic of materialism" and called for a return to painting.