Last Thursday (April 11), the CalArts School of Art announced the winners of the second annual Found Art Scholarship Competition. This collaborative project between the Chiquita Canyon landfill and the school was developed to connect CalArtians to the Santa Clarita community and inspire creativity through the use of discarded materials.
This years’ scholarship winners are:
- Nicole Pun (Art MFA 14) – First Prize ($4,000)
- Taralyn Thomas (Art BFA 14) – Second Prize ($2,500)
- Taylor Lovio (Art BFA 14) – Third Prize ($1,500)
- Lisandra Vazquez (Art BFA 15) – Runner Up ($500)
Officials from the 592-acre landfill located just north of CalArts in Castaic launched the competition last year, allowing students to visit the landfill to acquire objects of manageable size and weight. The resulting artworks were to be composed of at least 80% landfill material. This year’s work covers a broad range of media, from sculpture to photography to live performance.
The works were judged by a panel that included representatives from the School of Art faculty, the CalArts Board of Trustees and the local arts community. The runner-up award was sponsored by CalArts alumnus and trustee Dave Bossert (Film/Video BFA 83).
We’ve posted photos of the winning works and artists above.
Read more about this year’s competition in an article from Santa Clarita radio station KHTS AM 1220.