Via the UK Telegraph, I recently learned about Alex Queral, an artist currently living in Philadelphia, PA who creates portraits of celebrities and politicians, but what is interesting about him is that he carves these portraits out of discarded phone books.
Queral started using phonebooks when off looking for some wood and happened upon some abandoned phone books. They can be advantageous to use as they are often a free material that can be found in recycle bins and trash piles. Queral carves the famous faces into the phone books and slowly peels away the layers to create a low relief sculptural portrait.
While Queral may have been reusing discarded materials for about 14 years, it is still refreshing to see another example of how upcycling is used in art and craft.
Read more about Queral from the Telegraph and watch a video of Queral working.
Brilliant! I’ve only used phonebooks for make-shift high chairs and to press wildflowers…but sketching in them is a great idea.