BY TAMMY SCILEPPI
A great way to find happiness in the
new year is to meditate and practice
mindfulness. Another is by finding
contentment in everyday life and
beauty in ordinary things.
Whitney Oldenburg loves making
art from found objects. Created
from a variety of ordinary materials, like
rock, clay, string, tubing and various home
goods (including ice trays), her unexpected
art forms feel firm, spongy, smooth, rigid,
flexible or coarse to the touch.
Not surprisingly, the Long Island Citybased
artist says she’s “inspired by daily
life.” A fascination with the so-called
delicate balance and reciprocal impacts
humans and objects have on one another
shapes her highly imaginative creations.
Oldenburg’s must-see “Loose Ends”
solo exhibition – now on view at the
Materials for the Arts (MFTA) gallery in
Long Island City – celebrates the beauty
of everyday stuff and explores the
(perhaps universal) desire to keep things
tightly bound or complete, when they
can so easily become unraveled.
42 JANUARY 2 0 2 0
ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT
Recycled & Reimagined
Discover beauty in the ordinary at MFTA’s
dynamic exhibit by LIC-based artist