Found Art – Alaska Minimalist

This is a photo (actually three stitched together) of 55-gallon barrels stacked behind a welding shop in my neighborhood. To me, the strong verticals of the fence posts and trees, circles of the barrels, and the diagonal grid of the chain-link fence evoke the Minimalist Movement of the 1960s and ’70s.  Minimalism, in which design elements were reduced to basic colors and geometric forms, was a reaction to Abstract Expressionism . I find the photo vaguely reminiscent of some Frank Stella paintings.Then again, the use of everyday objects might make the composition Pop Art.

Whatever you call it, I like it. By the way, some might think this scene (stacks of possibly leaky barrels) is an environmental accident waiting to happen. However, the other ends of the barrels were cut off and the barrels contained scrap metal and parts—found art AND recycled shelving!