Julie Anand’s artwork in Nowhere to Hide: Three Artists in the Desert, which runs until February 20

ARTIST OF THE MONTH

Recycling has become a catchword in the creative world, and artists are increasingly using found objects to create new and interesting products. Julie Anand’s found objects also offer us a rare introspective opportunity.

Check out the exhibit Nowhere to Hide: Three Artists in the Desert at Arizona State University’s Art Museum in Tempe. Anand’s works are the result of her wanderings across various Valley landscapes – the Rio Salado habitat restoration project, an empty lot in Downtown’s historic Garfield neighborhood – to gather interesting objects to photograph or scan and put on bamboo paper.

These 8-foot-long collages include seashells, rope, driftwood, plastic jugs, license plates, old batteries and more. The result is an intriguing look at the cultures – past and present – that have called these areas home. It’s also a sobering statement on just how wasteful they’ve been.

The exhibit is part of the free museum’s Defining Sustainability series and runs until February 20.

The exhibit also includes thought-provoking works from Richard Lerman and Carrie Marill, who use audio recordings and watercolor paintings, respectively, to explore environmental topics. Lerman delves into water issues and Hoover Dam, while Marill loads bucolic paintings with satire.