I’ve had a lot of fun exploring the DMA’s galleries throughout the first three weeks of my McDermott internship. As a lover of collage and assemblage, I was excited to find a wide variety of artworks created with found objects. Although it was hard to narrow it down, here are three of my favorites:
Natural items, such as raffia, wood, cowrie shells, beads, parrot feathers, and goat hair were used to create this mid-20th century helmet mask from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
In Family Portrait, artist Martin Delabano used found materials to recreate everyday objects. He also included meaningful items, such as his father’s watch and a piece of his son’s baby blanket.
Jim Hodges’ Changing Things is composed of dozens of silk flowers. Find out what other found objects Hodges uses at the DMA’s upcoming exhibition, Jim Hodges: Give More Than You Take, which opens October 6th!
What would you create using found objects from your home? Stay tuned next month for a kid-friendly found object DIY project!
Artworks shown:
- Helmet mask (mukenga), mid-20th century, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa, Dallas Museum of Art, gift in honor of Peter Hanszen Lynch and Cristina Martha Frances Lynch
- Martin Delabano, Family Portrait, 1963, Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Bryant M. Hanley, Jr., Lorine and David H. Gibson, and Sonny Burt and Bob Butler
- Jim Hodges, Changing Things, 1997, Dallas Museum of Art, Mary Margaret Munson Wilcox Fund and gift of Catherine and Will Rose, Howard Rachofsky, Christopher Drew and Alexandra May, and Martin Posner and Robyn Menter-Posner
Amelia Wood
McDermott Intern for Family and Access Programs