Made and Remade – The Art of the Philadelphia Dumpster
Divers
April 7, 2025 - June 16, 2025
Creative Philadelphia Art Gallery, Room 116
Opening reception Friday, April 25, 2025 5 - 7
More information
Philadelphia Dumpster Divers Perkins Center for the Arts, Collingswood:
Loft Gallery: Philadelphia Dumpster Divers Show: Jan 4-Feb 24, 2023
Artist reception: Saturday, Jan 14 (5-8pm)
Perkins Center for the Arts
30 Irvin Ave
Collingswood, NJ 08108
2022
Celebrating 30 years!!!
April 8 – August 21
Dupree Gallery
703 S 6th St
Philadelphia, PA, PA 19147
A a very special group show from Philadelphia’s Dumpster Diver art collective.
Alchemy Illuminated is part of Philly’s annual CraftMONTH, in which CraftNOW
showcases the city’s craft and making scene through a series of events surrounding
the Philadelphia Museum of Art Contemporary Craft Show. Formed 29 years
ago, the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers are a found object art collective.
Join us for this exciting exhibit of assemblage at its finest, with artist
appearances and events throughout the show.
2018
Re-Crafted – 2018 Group Show
Found-Object Art of the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers
Oct 26 – Dec 29, 2018
Dupree Gallery
703 S 6th Street, Philadelphia PA 19147
The Philadelphia Dumpster Divers partnered with almost two dozen area
museums, galleries and fine craft organizations to celebrate our city’s
innovative craft culture, under the auspices of CraftNOW Philadelphia.
Dumpster Diversions – 2017 Group Show
Celebrating 25 years of found-object art by the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers
Oct 6th – Nov 4, 2017
Pop-up on Passyunk featuring windows filled with portraits of 26 longtime
Divers 1548 E Passyunk (at Tasker), Philadelphia PA 19147
The window portraits will be up every day through October 28, and will be
lit from 4 pm – 1:30 am.
2nd & 4th Floors, City Hall
Broad & Market Sts, Philadelphia, PA 19107
The Dumpster Divers were invited by the Philadelphia Office of Arts,
Culture and the Creative Economy participate in Philly VOTE, a nonpartisan
exhibit of works that encourage voting. These artworks were created by community
arts organizations and schools throughout Philadelphia’s neighborhoods.
Who are The Dumpster Divers of Philadelphia? They are a group of over
40 found object artists, meeting monthly to socialize with fellow art eccentrics,
share trash-picked finds, art-making, stories, field trip and flea market
news and exhibit announcements
This major group exhibition will show how found objects inspire artists
to create figures, masks, political statements, abstract assemblages, still
life, works of art contained in boxes, and art used for story-telling or
function. Their artwork is as diverse as the group and as the materials
used. All of it is engaging, often playful, sometimes political, ironic
and definitely delightful.
For over 20 years, the Philadelphia Dumpster Divers – a group of about
40 Philadelphia-area based artists, collectors and friends – have been working
with found objects and recycled materials to create extensive works and
group efforts.
Dumpster Divers RECLAIM Show at Destination Frankford Pop-Up Gallery
After years of neglect, the 4600 block of Paul Street in Frankford is
beginning a new life. Destination Frankford is transforming a formerly vacant
storefront into an energetic art venue. The temporary pop-up art gallery
will accelerate the process of neighborhood revitalization in Frankford.
OPENING RECEPTION for RECLAIM & BLOCK PARTY
Saturday, April 19 | 2:00 – 5:00pm
@ the corner of Frankford Avenue and Paul Street
MFL to Margaret-Orthodox
Three separate exhibitions will each focus on one part of the theme:
RECLAIM | REDISCOVER | REANIMATE
RECLAIM will feature members of Philadelphia’s Dumpster Divers. Saturdays
from April 19 to May 17, 2014, the Dumpster Divers will RECLAIM discarded
materials and transform them into new art forms. Seventeen artists who see
the possibilities in trash and other under-utilized resources will bring
a new awareness to the concept of “upcycling “to Frankford.
Destination Frankford is an arts-based initiative using MARKETING and
CREATIVE PLACEMAKING to enhance and expand the resources of the Frankford’s
growing ARTS, ARTISANAL INDUSTRY, and CREATIVE BUSINESS economy.
Destination Frankford is a project of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
Local partners include the Frankford Community Development Corporation,
Globe Development Group, and Philadelphia Sculptors.
Destination Frankford Supported By Art Place Destination Frankford is supported
by a grant from ArtPlace America, a collaboration of leading national and
regional foundations, banks and federal agencies accelerating creative placemaking
across the US.
Archives Alchemy – The Art of the Dumpster Divers
January 10 to April 24, 2014
National Archives at Philadelphia
900 Market St, Philadelphia, PA, 19107
(The entrance is actually on the 900 block of Chestnut St, look for the
sign)
Opening Reception January 10th from 5:00 – 7:30 pm
Featuring artwork from Dumpster Divers: Harry Anderson, Alden Cole, Betsy
Alexander, Gretchen Altabef, Sara Benowitz, Ellen Benson, Carol Cole, cdavid
HallCottlril, Dan Enright, George Felice, Bruce Gast, Carey Hedlund, Joanne
Hoffman, Linda Lou Horn, Ann Keech, Smokie Kittner, Susan Moloney, Toni
Nash, Neil Benson, Eva Preston, Susan Richards, Kate Mellina, Joel Spivak,
Jim Ulrich, Sally Willowbee & Burnell Yow!
The Games We Played: Remade at the Burlington County Art Center
June 9 – July 8, 2009
Burlington County Annex Art Gallery – Smithville Mansion Smithville
Road, Mount Holly, NJ 08060
June 9 – July 8, 2009 Opening Reception: June 9, 7:00 – 9:00 pm
Exploring Recycling through Art (Clue: it’s the Dumpster Divers)
in the Smithville Mansion’s Bowling Alley and Billiard Room
Philadelphia Dumpster Divers at Goggleworks Center for the Arts
April 2 – June 11, 2009
Goggleworks Center for the Arts – Outsider Folk Art Gallery 201 Washington
Street, Reading, PA 19601-4040
Tuesday – Saturday 10:00 am – 6:00 pm First Thursday Reception: 5:30
– 8:00 pm
Discussion with the Dumpster Divers to be held Second Sunday, May 10,
2009
Found Object Art, The Trashy Women and Dumpster Divas: A Little on the
Trashy Side at the Cecil County Arts Center
March 27 – April 24, 2009
Cecil County Arts Center 135 East Main Street, Elkton, MD.
Opening Reception – Friday, March 27, 5:00 – 7:00 pm.
Recycling is aMAZEing at the Please Touch Museum
March 01 – April 30, 2009
Please Touch Museum, Memorial Hall 4231 Avenue of the Republic, Philadelphia
PA 19131
Mon, Wed, Fri: 1:00 – 4:00 pm.
Sculpture from Styrofoam packing pieces created with visitors and Dumpster
Diver artists in residence. Completed recycled Styrofoam sculpture maze
on exhibit for the month of April.
2006
25 by 25 at the Art on the Avenue Gallery
November 10 – 27, 2006
Art on the Avenue Gallery 3808 Lancaster Ave, Philadelphia PA
Tue – Sat 12 – 7 pm Opening Reception: November 10th, 6 – 10 pm
What do you get when you take 25 selected Philadelphia Dumpster Divers,
give each of them the same materials (25+ items) to work with and send them
off for a few months to their respective creative lairs to create an artwork?
And the only rule is that “There are no rules, only materials.”
2004
Trash Transformation: Art Alchemy at the Home & Planet
October 1 – November 14, 2004
Home & Planet Gallery 25 East Third St, Bethlehem, PA
Opening Reception: October 1st, 7 – 10 pm
Trash Transformation – Art Alchemy,” an exhibit by Philadelphia’s Dumpster
Divers, offers a high-style alternative for America’s throw-away culture.
It is a vision that includes artistic craft, innovation and garbage. Visitors
should prepare to be amazed.
Dumpster Divers on South Sreet at the South Street Renaissance Gallery
September 5 – September 26, 2004
South Street Renaissance Gallery 427 South St. 2nd Floor, Philadelphia
PA
This art collective finds all its materials in one place: the garbage.
But their beautiful creations are far from trashy–they’re a commentary on
the wastefulness of our society.
Saving Philadelphia: The Art of the Dumpster Divers at the Sedgwick
Cultural Center
January 16 – March 14, 2004
Sedgwick Cultural Center 7137 Germantown Ave, Philadelphia PA
Opening Reception: Jan. 16th, 5 – 9 pm
Leo Sewell demonstration: January 22 at 3:30 pm
Len Davidson led panel discussion: January 25th, 1 – 5 pm
Isaiah Zagar slide presentation and Meet the Artist Day: February
15th, at 2 pm
Philly’s Dumpster Divers have had a formidable ride since their 1992
inception. They’ve taken Dumpster Diving beyond the anarchist, sociopolitical
rhetoric of radical nonconsumption into the pragmatic act of creation.
Upcycling,
The Art of the Dumpster Divers