Trash to EFP Process

STEP ONE:

I leave the house and disconnect from media.  Connect with my sacred place, studio and surf spot.   

Login to life, connect, and start seeing man made castaways, EUP's, that do not belong. They don't belong to me or possibly you. A decision must be made.  Leave or pick up?  Get angry or do absolutely nothing?

Leaving would be wrong.  Planet Earth, God's Masterpiece, deserves better.

STEP TWO:

Pick up.  Determine if a castaway can be converted to EFP.  Time to create, have fun, let loose, challenge myself, crawl in the sand, get splashed, get soaked, get full of sand.  Be, in the moment and be who I am.  

RULE - must use trash found on the cleanup of beach that is about 300 steps in length.  Partner with light, shadow, water, sand, and trash.  No cut and pasting allowed.

STEP THREE:

Now the beach is done.  Time to spruce up Pacific Coast Highway (PCH).  Both sides of the highway require attention across from the beach just cleaned.

This mission is equally and perhaps more critical.  There are four drainages along this short section of PCH. Although rain is infrequent, this stockpile of trash can and does flow freely onto the beach and into the ocean below.

STEP FOUR:  

When safe to do so, with no traffic, compose and capture another unique one-of-a-kind piece of artwork.  

Simple life saving reminder and rule, do not take unnecessary risks.  Most of my artwork was created on the beach for obvious safety reasons.  Cleanups were completed early morning or late evening so there was minimal traffic on the shoulder of PCH.

STEP FIVE:

Clean up completed!

Now the trash is collected, bagged, tagged, and ready for a brief ride inland.

As mentioned earlier, my weekly clean-ups were completed, rain or shine.  Only the Woolsey Fire and Covid beach closures prevented clean-ups from occurring. 

STEP SIX:

All clean-ups, are meticulously inventoried, documented, and photographed.  This cleanup yielded 430 pieces of trash.

Trash was relocated to appropriate trash or recycle bins.  

As mentioned previously, many of the items picked up were retained to accompany my photography presentations.  Examples of this are the paint can (beach) and wooden stick (PCH).   

I call them "Art-I-Facts."