What do you do with your rubbish? Throw it out? You don't know what you're missing! Look closely at the two figures on your left. They were made from things most people throw away. The figures were made from used bottle caps. Those two bottle-cap figures were exhibited (展示) in a museum.
Folk art is art made by common people who have not been trained as artists. Their work is often based on traditions in their culture. Fine art, on the other hand, is usually made by people who have had training in art. Works of fine art are valued for their artistic beauty. They are supposed to be looked at but not used. Works of folk art, however, are often made for everyday use.
There were more than 800 pieces of folk art from nearly 50 countries in the exhibition. All of the pieces were made from used metal, wood, cloth, and plastic. The artists come from many different cultures. Still, they all share one thing. They take objects that are normally thrown away and change them into objects that are beautiful, useful, and fun. The artists may not think of what they do as recycling, but that's exactly what it is. Fine artists might work with expensive materials. They might use expensive tools to shape these materials into works of art. On the other hand, in poor countries rubbish might be the only material folk artists and toy makers can afford. The exhibition shows that a rich imagination is very important when there are only poor materials. Recycled art began long before people began to think about recycling. Some of the objects in the exhibition date from the 1930s.
Even if you don't create art out of rubbish, it's good to save our natural resources. Remember the three Rules: reduce, reuse, recycle. If you reduce waste, true things instead of throwing them out, and recycle materials such as paper, plastic, and glass, you will protect the environment.
