Today, your earnest masterpiece is most likely one of many abandoned cassette tapes collecting dust in garages, closets, and thrift stores across America-square victims of both the CD and MP3 player. But mixed-media artist Erika Iris Simmons has found a creative way to breathe new life into the outmoded media, creating portraits of rock icons using the uncoiled ribbon within the tapes.
Treehugger has photos of a few portraits from the series (Simmons's Flickr page has more), along with details on the recycled art:
Simmons, who works under the pseudonym Iri5, first stumbled upon the idea to transform cassettes into portraits after noting a similarity between a pile of unrolled film and the Jimmy Hendrix's untamed locks. She soon set out to make her first piece: a portrait of the rock idol himself.
Other materials repurposed by Simmons includes magazine clippings, film tape, and playing cards-non-traditional mediums that make the old new in a way that's both modern and sustainable.
What artist would you like to see Simmons tackle next with her cassette tape art? I call Thom Yorke. Capturing that lazy eye would be a challenge all its own.
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