Earth Month Sustainable Art Showcase
Sustainable Art Showcase
H–E–B is partnering with The Trail Conservancy to celebrate sustainability during Earth Month! As part of our shared commitment to environmental stewardship, for the month of April, we are transforming the new H-E-B South Congress store‘s vestibule into a gallery showcasing art made from recycled materials.
Want to make one of these pieces yours? Contact the artist under each piece to discuss purchasing the piece on display!
Rosie Ganske
Blanton Perspective
oil pastel, paint marker on Central Market plantain chip bags | 25″ x 31″
My art practice has stages of play and meditation. I keep my curiosity and joy of discovery alive in my search for, and experimentation with, new artmaking materials. As a kid, I played a witch, and spent time with my coven of neighborhood friends collecting natural materials to brew potions that we’d use on our brothers. I’m still in love with collecting, though with more education, I’ve shifted to collecting materials that take my relationship with the environment into consideration, such as wrappers or discarded items on the street that I see potential in, and hope I can make something transformed and magical out of. Guided by material properties, my approach varies, though I often consider translucency, light, layering, texture and pattern. Transformation of a specific material is where I dream and play until I figure out what I want to do. From there, I work meditatively in small steps, to process, alter and combine natural and man-made materials meticulously into intricate sculptural assemblages. These are richly and warmly colored, sometimes metallic or glossy, and often made of many small parts that are stitched, glued, woven, or otherwise made into one body.
Rosie Ganske
The Crest
chip bags, candy wrappers, Kerrygold butter wrappers, vinyl, paint markers 30″ x 48″
My art practice has stages of play and meditation. I keep my curiosity and joy of discovery alive in my search for, and experimentation with, new artmaking materials. As a kid, I played a witch, and spent time with my coven of neighborhood friends collecting natural materials to brew potions that we’d use on our brothers. I’m still in love with collecting, though with more education, I’ve shifted to collecting materials that take my relationship with the environment into consideration, such as wrappers or discarded items on the street that I see potential in, and hope I can make something transformed and magical out of. Guided by material properties, my approach varies, though I often consider translucency, light, layering, texture and pattern. Transformation of a specific material is where I dream and play until I figure out what I want to do. From there, I work meditatively in small steps, to process, alter and combine natural and man-made materials meticulously into intricate sculptural assemblages. These are richly and warmly colored, sometimes metallic or glossy, and often made of many small parts that are stitched, glued, woven, or otherwise made into one body.
Amy Scofield
Urchins
valve stems cut from used bicycle tubes, salvaged CAT5 wire, metal grid
23″ x 17″ x 12″
I’ve been invited to create large-scale outdoor installations in Texas, Colorado and France, each using recycled or repurposed elements that graphically express our tenuous relationship to our environment. Salvaged bike tubes, Mylar strips, decommissioned city water pipe, and fallen trees are some of the components she incorporates into striking, incongruous forms.
In smaller works, I employ found and scrounged materials such as stones, mud, plastic bottles, leftover construction materials, roadside detritus, as well as digital video and photography, to examine social issues.
Steph Granillo
Rescued Remnants I
doll clothing, baby clothing, bibs, artificial flowers | 17″ x 17″
An Austin-based quilt artist whose work celebrates the joy and beauty that can be found in unexpected places. Steph transforms forgotten textiles into dynamic, colorful compositions, using discarded clothing and household linens that would otherwise be destined for the landfill. This process not only promotes sustainability but also honors the silent stories woven into these fabrics.
Steph Granillo
Rescued Remnants II
jeans, satin pillowcase | 17″ x 17″
An Austin-based quilt artist whose work celebrates the joy and beauty that can be found in unexpected places. Steph transforms forgotten textiles into dynamic, colorful compositions, using discarded clothing and household linens that would otherwise be destined for the landfill. This process not only promotes sustainability but also honors the silent stories woven into these fabrics.
Suzanne Wyss
Egg Math
egg crates and wire | 36″ X 48″ X 18″
In my work I transform industrial materials into organic forms, as a multi-disciplinary artist I focus on installation and sculpture. Using repetition and the inherent “isness” of each material, the result is something altogether new, the processed material, morphed into natural form and movement. Repurposing the remnants of our Westernized culture gives my materials a depth and a point of connection to the everyday viewer, showing them that even the commonplace can surprise you. Working with the remnants of our world makes the most sense for what I do, because morally I don’t want my art to contribute to our massive trash problem. Conceptually I’m a materialist, and I love the surprise of discovering a secret side of the mundane.
I received my MFA in sculpture from Indiana University in 2013 and my BFA in sculpture and ceramics from the University of Minnesota, Duluth in 2010, originally hailing from the Black Hills of South Dakota. Since becoming a Texan in 2013 my most notable works are a permanent landscape installation at Springdale General, a complex repurposed tube sculpture at Thinkery ATX, and a site-specific honeycomb installation for the Facebook Artist in Residence Program. In the spring of 2023, I received my masters in Landscape Architecture at the University of Texas at Austin to further explore the integration between sculpture and landscape.
Nathan Miller
Trash Atlas
discarded copper water heater float with patina and trash, aluminum melted 24″ x 10″ x 10″
Nathan Miller was born in the US, grew up in Europe and now lives in Dripping Springs TX. He found out in 2015 that much of what we recycle is not actually recycled, but rather ends up in landfill. And it turns out that with 50 bucks and your wife’s hairdryer, you can use charcoal to melt your beer cans and BBQ trays! So he built a foundry and started recycling his own aluminum waste. From that effort to reuse, he has started creating artistic castings and sculptures with various themes. All of the metal in his art was discarded. He works with copper, brass, steel, iron, and aluminum.
Stephanie Nissley
Conic Burst
repurposed plastics and wood | 15″ diameter
I am a mixed media artist who has dabbled in many creative directions over time. Repurposing items and creating treasures from so-called trash is a particular delight. My recent artistic endeavors involve painting with plastic and creating tableaus from trash.
Maria Gonzalez
Bicicletas de Papel
glue, recycled magazine paper | 5″ x 4″
A 75-year-old Mexican woman whose life has been a testament to sustainable artistry. For decades, she has intuitively practiced reuse and upcycling, long before these concepts became mainstream. Her work isn’t born from academic training, but from a deep-rooted cultural understanding of resourcefulness and a personal mission to transform discarded materials into objects of beauty and utility. Growing up in Mexico, she learned the value of mending, repurposing, and minimizing waste as a way of life. This ingrained practice informs every aspect of her creative process. It’s not just about aesthetics; it’s about honoring the history and potential of every material. Whether it’s transforming old fabrics into something special, repurposing discarded containers into decorative items, or giving new life to weathered wood, she demonstrates an unwavering commitment to minimizing waste.
Rosie Ganske
Blanton Perspective
oil pastel, paint marker on Central Market plantain chip bags | 25″ x 31″
My art practice has stages of play and meditation. I keep my curiosity and joy of discovery alive in my search for, and experimentation with, new artmaking materials. As a kid, I played a witch, and spent time with my coven of neighborhood friends collecting natural materials to brew potions that we’d use on our brothers. I’m still in love with collecting, though with more education, I’ve shifted to collecting materials that take my relationship with the environment into consideration, such as wrappers or discarded items on the street that I see potential in, and hope I can make something transformed and magical out of. Guided by material properties, my approach varies, though I often consider translucency, light, layering, texture and pattern. Transformation of a specific material is where I dream and play until I figure out what I want to do. From there, I work meditatively in small steps, to process, alter and combine natural and man-made materials meticulously into intricate sculptural assemblages. These are richly and warmly colored, sometimes metallic or glossy, and often made of many small parts that are stitched, glued, woven, or otherwise made into one body.
Rosie Ganske
The Crest
chip bags, candy wrappers, Kerrygold butter wrappers, vinyl, paint markers 30″ x 48″
My art practice has stages of play and meditation. I keep my curiosity and joy of discovery alive in my search for, and experimentation with, new artmaking materials. As a kid, I played a witch, and spent time with my coven of neighborhood friends collecting natural materials to brew potions that we’d use on our brothers. I’m still in love with collecting, though with more education, I’ve shifted to collecting materials that take my relationship with the environment into consideration, such as wrappers or discarded items on the street that I see potential in, and hope I can make something transformed and magical out of. Guided by material properties, my approach varies, though I often consider translucency, light, layering, texture and pattern. Transformation of a specific material is where I dream and play until I figure out what I want to do. From there, I work meditatively in small steps, to process, alter and combine natural and man-made materials meticulously into intricate sculptural assemblages. These are richly and warmly colored, sometimes metallic or glossy, and often made of many small parts that are stitched, glued, woven, or otherwise made into one body.
Amy Scofield
Urchins
valve stems cut from used bicycle tubes, salvaged CAT5 wire, metal grid
23″ x 17″ x 12″
I’ve been invited to create large-scale outdoor installations in Texas, Colorado and France, each using recycled or repurposed elements that graphically express our tenuous relationship to our environment. Salvaged bike tubes, Mylar strips, decommissioned city water pipe, and fallen trees are some of the components she incorporates into striking, incongruous forms.
In smaller works, I employ found and scrounged materials such as stones, mud, plastic bottles, leftover construction materials, roadside detritus, as well as digital video and photography, to examine social issues.
Steph Granillo
Rescued Remnants I
doll clothing, baby clothing, bibs, artificial flowers | 17″ x 17″
An Austin-based quilt artist whose work celebrates the joy and beauty that can be found in unexpected places. Steph transforms forgotten textiles into dynamic, colorful compositions, using discarded clothing and household linens that would otherwise be destined for the landfill. This process not only promotes sustainability but also honors the silent stories woven into these fabrics.
Steph Granillo
Rescued Remnants II
jeans, satin pillowcase | 17″ x 17″
An Austin-based quilt artist whose work celebrates the joy and beauty that can be found in unexpected places. Steph transforms forgotten textiles into dynamic, colorful compositions, using discarded clothing and household linens that would otherwise be destined for the landfill. This process not only promotes sustainability but also honors the silent stories woven into these fabrics.
Suzanne Wyss
Egg Math
egg crates and wire | 36″ X 48″ X 18″
In my work I transform industrial materials into organic forms, as a multi-disciplinary artist I focus on installation and sculpture. Using repetition and the inherent “isness” of each material, the result is something altogether new, the processed material, morphed into natural form and movement. Repurposing the remnants of our Westernized culture gives my materials a depth and a point of connection to the everyday viewer, showing them that even the commonplace can surprise you. Working with the remnants of our world makes the most sense for what I do, because morally I don’t want my art to contribute to our massive trash problem. Conceptually I’m a materialist, and I love the surprise of discovering a secret side of the mundane.
I received my MFA in sculpture from Indiana University in 2013 and my BFA in sculpture and ceramics from the University of Minnesota, Duluth in 2010, originally hailing from the Black Hills of South Dakota. Since becoming a Texan in 2013 my most notable works are a permanent landscape installation at Springdale General, a complex repurposed tube sculpture at Thinkery ATX, and a site-specific honeycomb installation for the Facebook Artist in Residence Program. In the spring of 2023, I received my masters in Landscape Architecture at the University of Texas at Austin to further explore the integration between sculpture and landscape.
Nathan Miller
Trash Atlas
discarded copper water heater float with patina and trash, aluminum melted 24″ x 10″ x 10″
Nathan Miller was born in the US, grew up in Europe and now lives in Dripping Springs TX. He found out in 2015 that much of what we recycle is not actually recycled, but rather ends up in landfill. And it turns out that with 50 bucks and your wife’s hairdryer, you can use charcoal to melt your beer cans and BBQ trays! So he built a foundry and started recycling his own aluminum waste. From that effort to reuse, he has started creating artistic castings and sculptures with various themes. All of the metal in his art was discarded. He works with copper, brass, steel, iron, and aluminum.
Stephanie Nissley
Conic Burst
repurposed plastics and wood | 15″ diameter
I am a mixed media artist who has dabbled in many creative directions over time. Repurposing items and creating treasures from so-called trash is a particular delight. My recent artistic endeavors involve painting with plastic and creating tableaus from trash.
Maria Gonzalez
Bicicletas de Papel
glue, recycled magazine paper | 5″ x 4″
A 75-year-old Mexican woman whose life has been a testament to sustainable artistry. For decades, she has intuitively practiced reuse and upcycling, long before these concepts became mainstream. Her work isn’t born from academic training, but from a deep-rooted cultural understanding of resourcefulness and a personal mission to transform discarded materials into objects of beauty and utility. Growing up in Mexico, she learned the value of mending, repurposing, and minimizing waste as a way of life. This ingrained practice informs every aspect of her creative process. It’s not just about aesthetics; it’s about honoring the history and potential of every material. Whether it’s transforming old fabrics into something special, repurposing discarded containers into decorative items, or giving new life to weathered wood, she demonstrates an unwavering commitment to minimizing waste.
More Earth Month Celebrations
Explore current and past Arts + Culture projects on the Butler Trail, learn about our Arts + Culture Plan, and join our artists database for information on any upcoming artist calls and projects.
