K u r o s       Z a h e d i

A friend in Seattle forwarded me an email about Ari Derfel, who had saved his trash for one year and was looking for an artist to turn it into a work of art.  Wow, I thought.  What a pre-potentized package of materials to work with;  what an opportunity!  I emailed.  I talked about my work with trash and the Urban Alchemy projects.  I provided links to images and media.  Ari wrote back.  We talked on email.  We talked on the phone.  I liked Ari immediately.  I liked his energy, his upbeat positivity, spirituality and openness. 

... and the next thing I knew, I was on a plane to the Oakland.

This is Ari.  He had just picked me up from the airport here. We spent the day together in his home, with his garbage collection.  I tried to take in his life as much as I could.  We visited his work, Back to Earth.  We talked about our goals, ideas, visions... I still had no idea what I'd do with the trash... to turn it into art.

Ari showing me his trash in his apartment in Berkeley.

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