The Right Tool Makes All The Difference

My name is Pam Wagoner and I am an emerging mixed-media, creative reuse artist. I love taking items and materials that are often discarded or seen as trash and turning them into something new, useful and worthy of admiration. My goal is to inspire people to waste less, while being creative about it. I hope that the beauty and uniqueness of the art will draw attention to the fact that we all need to be more aware of the waste we generate, how we dispose of it and the impact those decisions make on our environment.

My favorite resources to use are retired media discs, like CDs, DVDs, the plastic, jewel cases that holds the CDs, laser discs, and vinyl records, as well as single-use plastic, glass and paper packaging. Using multiple tools and mostly unconventional or made up techniques, I cut, heat, paint and transform trash into what I hope are inspirational works of art that will last for generations to come. Since what I do is not really taught, I create my own or tweak traditional processes and learn most of my techniques on the fly using what I have on hand. I take walks in nature and often find interesting dried plants, rocks or other natural resources that I like to use as stencils or stamps in my art. I am not a traditional artist or painter by any stretch of the imagination. I adore whimsy and wit, but also try to strike a balance with an underlying statement about our wastefulness as a society and need to protect our environment. My art often depicts what I see in nature combined with my own imagination. For example, a recent piece titled, “Seanicorn,” is a sculptural wall hanging depicting a whimsical sea horse with a unicorn horn. Another example is a mosaic piece titled, “Nautilus”, which uses pieces of CDs and DVDs to form the image of a nautilus shell. Nature is always at the heart of my art.

In most of my media disc projects I cut these rather rigid plastic discs into smaller pieces and specific shapes. I really love using every piece and try not to waste anything, which often leads to cutting the smaller plastic pieces into very small, precise bits to be used in mosaics. It takes a strong and reliable pair of scissors to do the best work. I have tried about every type of cutting device and circled back around to a trusty pair of Fiskars scissors (really, I am not just saying this for the challenge). When I first started creating my media disc art I would simply use whatever cheap pair of scissors we had in the drawer to attempt to cut them into the shapes I needed. I had to take lots of breaks from cutting the discs, because my hands would cramp up and the pain was too much to continue. The media discs are also prone to cracking during the cutting process, which can ruin the material. However, I have learned through my experiences that a sharp and high quality pair of scissors will reduce the risk of cracking and will allow me to work on my art longer. It took time, research and experience before I realized I could be happier making my art, if I had the right tool. This same pair of scissors is also my favorite tool for cutting all kinds of paper for my decoupage and other craft classes. Whether I am creating wall hangings, sculptures, jewelry or other forms of upcycled arts and crafts, I have learned to enjoy the process more and can truly “create my own happiness” when I am empowered with the right tool for the job.