Garden Transforms Trash Into Works of Art

Trash is making a splash in South Coast Botanic Garden in Los Angeles County this spring. The Garden’s latest exhibit, Washed Ashore – Art to Save the Sea, features sixteen giant creatures made from beach debris. The sculptures, which consist primarily of sea creatures, were built by Washed Ashore – Art to Save the Sea, a non-profit organization committed to combating plastic pollution through art and education, and its volunteers to inspire and spark positive changes in consumer habits.  The Garden, having been built atop a sanitary landfill, has been proof over the past sixty years that beautiful things can come from trashy pasts. With this exhibit, the Garden further explores the concept as well as the education behind what can be done to limit waste, particularly the use of plastic. 

South Coast Botanic Garden is an 87-acre public botanic garden containing over 200,000 plants and 2,000 species of plants from around the world. The garden was created on a sanitary landfill in 1959 by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors at the request of community members. Specialty gardens include the Japanese Garden, Fuchsia Garden, Children’s Garden and the two-acre formal James J. White Rose Garden. A man-made lake at the center of the garden attracts several species of waterfowl. The garden is an oasis for over 200 species of birds that make their homes at the garden or just use the garden as a stop in their annual migration.