Discover the joy of creative recycling

Val Hunt creates wonderful pieces of art from discarded rubbish. Ann Evans finds out more.

- Ann Evans

VAL HUNT'S work is rubbish literally. This fabulously creative award-winning craft artist works with other people's throwaway items such as plastic, bottle tops, junk mail, foil takeaway cartons, babies' dummies and - her favourite material to work with aluminium drinks cans.

She finds the soft, pliable nature of the aluminum ideal, and under her skilful hands the metal can be woven, pleated, gathered, frilled, twisted, curled, or turned into tassels, spirals and beads.

Inspired by nature and deeply concerned with pollution and climate change, she sends out the message with her work that unless we do something about pollution, we are going to lose more and more of our precious wildlife.

Her major touring exhibition "Reincarnated Rubbish Endangered And Extinct" features animals, birds, fish, reptiles and even dinosaurs, all on the edge or already lost to us for ever.

Nevertheless, there is great humour and wit in all her creations.