Texas order Business

McALLEN, Texas – The International Museum of Art & Science (IMAS) will be exhibiting Michelle Stitzlein’s large-scale sculpture exhibition created entirely from recycled materials in a large studio converted from a former grange hall in Baltimore, Ohio. “Industrial Nature” will be exhibited at the International Museum of Art & Science in the Cardenas and Main Galleries February 26 through August 21, 2022. 

This exhibit is made possible by an Arts Respond grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts. The artist in residence stay is supported by an Arts Create 2 grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts. 

Celebrate the opening of “Industrial Nature” with visiting artist Michelle Stitzlein who will be at the IMAS for both the installation of the exhibit and an artist in residence program. 

IMAS Members are invited to an opening reception for “Industrial Nature” on Saturday, July 28, 2022, from 5:00-7:00 p.m. Learn more about membership online, call (956) 681-2800, or visit the IMAS to join or renew your membership. 

During Stitzlein’s artist residency, community members will have several art-centric opportunities to learn from and create with the artist at the IMAS. Saturday, February 25, features an interactive art workshop “Beetle and Butterfly Recycled Collages,” open to adults who pre-register. On Sunday, February 27, at 2:00 p.m., the artist will share about her process during a presentation entitled “Creative Use Inspired by Nature.” On March 2 and 3, from 2:00-4:30 p.m., IMAS visitors of all ages can drop in to the Ann Moore Art Studio to join Stitzlein in creating upcycled art with materials such as Plastic Bottle Caps, CDs, and plastic lids.  

Finally on Friday, March 4, museum visitors can participate in community artmaking with Stitzlein during the Polk Dot Bottle Cap Sculptures workshop. As a collaborative effort, participants will help create outdoor sculptures inspired by nature with repurposed plastic Bottle Caps. These caps, formerly destined for the landfill, were collected by the community and will be utilized in a new format as colorful art material. Arranged like pixels on a computer screen, participants arrange the circle caps into patterns and then drill them into place. These whimsical sculptures will then be placed on display outdoors at the museum. 

We invite community members to donate plastic bottle caps of various colors between 1” and 3” and clear or colored plastic lids larger than 5”. Please bring collected items in a jar or bag (that will not be returned) to the museum during the hours of operation. 

About the Artist, Michelle Stitzlein 

During her travels she has met artists in countries such as South Africa, Namibia, Guatemala, Mexico, Bolivia, Colombia and India, and has been inspired by their resourcefulness & ingenuity with found materials. 

A graduate of the Columbus College of Art & Design, Stitzlein has also taught workshops, as an artist-in-residence, at elementary schools, art camps, and arts festivals. 

Using the humble plastic bottle cap as her medium, she encourages recycling through the means of art making. She has assisted children all over the US to make colorful murals, and whimsical outdoor sculptures utilizing thousands of bottle caps that would otherwise end up in a landfill. 

She published the how-to books “Bottlecap Little Bottlecap” and “Cool Caps!,” as resources for parents and teachers. Projects from both books have been represented in Ranger Rick magazine as well as on HGTV. 

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