Unbridled creativity was unleashed on the community’s trash containers on Sunday as artists turned eight drab dumpsters into psychedelic receptacles.
The artists were painting commercial bins as part of the fourth annual Out of the Box: A Dumpster Art Project, an initiative by the City of Fernie and the Beautification Committee, to pretty up the city’s trash containers.
Prospective artists submitted their dumpster designs to the Fernie and District Arts Council, which selected seven finalists to compete for a $500 prize.
The commercial dumpsters were generously donated by Southeast Disposal. The artists were given from July 7 to 9 to finish their pieces.
Louise Hilliard, administrator for The Arts Station, said the competition gives the community’s less well known artists a chance to exhibit their work.
“This is a different kind of art,” she said. “There are lots of artists in town but these are generally the street artists and the younger artists who might have a different style. It’s nice to see a different demographic represented.”
Joey Kosolofski reached back into his roots as a street artist and used spray paint to etch the image of a rose and the words ABC, Easy as 1-2-3 into his dumpster.
“Life’s so simple, don’t overcomplicate it,” said Kosolofski. “Slow down, take in the small things.”
Scott Cable started with the image of an otherworldly and monstrous green face, to which he added ominous towers and tentacles.
“I wanted to try something different,” he said. “I usually just start drawing and see where it goes.”
Dejana Lukac, a Fernie artist originally from Croatia, painted striking images of a wolf and a bear. The intensity of the colours in her work also rose with the height of the dumpster, starting red on the bottom and becoming bluer up top.
Davis Fultz and Drew Hampson used old school tattoos as inspiration for their work. Their dumpster featured vampire lady lips, pyramids and stars.
“It’s abstract,” said Fultz. “We didn’t think about the design too much. We just wanted something cool.”
Leanna-Raye Timmons painted her dumpster with some of her favourite things, which happen to be unicorns. The young Calgarian admitted to have been painting horses since she was a little girl.
Brina Schenk’s dumpster featured a robot sporting an outrageous corsage, while local abstract artist Peggy Black painted her dumpster with mountains.
After a vote, locals selected Kosolofski’s creation as the winner but Hilliard said other beneficiaries include the citizens who will be enjoying the works of art, which have been distributed around town for use and enjoyment.
“You obviously have to have dumpsters and bins all over town and they can be a bit of an eyesore, so if we can make them look nicer, I see that as a benefit,” she said. “It makes the town look welcoming and friendly.”