UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The HUB-Robeson Galleries is presenting the exhibition "CARE. not convenience," on view daily in the HUB Gallery and online. Created entirely with salvaged plastic, this collaboration between an artist, designer and an environmental sciences researcher aspired to shed light on society’s dependence and careless overuse as well as thoughtless disposal of plastic. 

Collaborators are faculty at Michigan State University and include Jae Won Lee, professor of art; Kelly Salchow MacArthur, professor of graphic design; and Lissy Goralnik, assistant professor in the Department of Community Sustainability.

Plastic. It is convenient and pervasive, life-saving and the root of suffering. It is so ingrained in our lives it is hard to image a world without it. This imagining lies at the heart the exhibition. The primary material used for work creation was found and collected plastic bags. The extensive exploration of this petroleum-based material has led to methods of fusing sheets of plastic with heat and making art forms with functional design capabilities (such as wearable art and hanging space dividers) and attention to minimizing waste in processes of production. 

“The main over-arching goal of this project is to make people aware and change habits,” Salchow MacArthur said. “I think we’re in a crisis, and the more people who bring it to the forefront and talk about it, the more we can look at our daily habits and our activities and what we think is convenient or necessary regarding our plastic use.” 

In order to maximize the project’s success, collaboration between the fields of art and science was necessary. 

“Coming up with collaborative, collective solutions toward plastic pollution requires artists to work with scientists, academics with community members, and the developed world with developing nations,” Lee said. "We need to work together to bring awareness to our environmental problems.” 

The HUB-Robeson Galleries will host a series of events this semester with opportunities to make and respond to ideas about plastic waste in our worlds. On Oct. 22 from noon to 1 p.m. a student-led virtual online reception will be held. Register for this webinar through zoom. Join the artists in a walkthrough 360 tour, Q&A and reflection of plastic use. For future events, visit the HUB-Robeson Galleries website for information. 

This exhibition was selected by a jury of Penn State faculty, staff and students. 

For more information on this and other exhibitions, contact the HUB-Robeson Galleries at 814-865-2563 or visit at studentaffairs.psu.edu/hub/art-galleries.

Virtual reception: Oct. 22, noon to 1 p.m. 

Register Here 

Aug. 24 – Nov. 20 in HUB Gallery 

Virtual exhibition online through January 2021