January 21, 2015

Artist taps old computer parts for techie cityscapes

Old motherboards get a new lease on life in the hands of one Italian artist who makes art out of old computer parts.

Artist taps old computer parts for techie cityscapes
A circuit-sized view of Central Park in New York.

For some people, old circuit boards and computer components needlessly fill up space, awaiting a proper sendoff to the electronics recycling facility. Italian artist Franco Recchia sees opportunity in those old parts, though, and instead creates fascinating miniature city skylines with the pieces of forgotten technology

The artist covers an array of major cities, including New York, Chicago, Detroit, and more. In an interview with the Agora art gallery, Recchia reveals that he often finds parts in "trash heaps" and that it takes four different styles of welding to make the techno cities.

Artist taps old computer parts for techie cityscapes
Recchia created this unique vision of Manhattan out of frames used in computer cases.

"Recchia seeks in his sculptures to bring dignity to the process of modern creation, to highlight how every product produced by human hands contains talent, imagination and great beauty, and ultimately stems from the vast reservoir of human experience of which we are all a part," says a statement from the Agora gallery. "His sculptures are indeed a testament to what is beautiful, elegant, and functional in the modern object, and are a tribute to the aptitude and passion that are our inheritance."

Artist taps old computer parts for techie cityscapes
                                                          Franco Recchia, Boston

Artist taps old computer parts for techie cityscapes
Franco Recchia, Metropolis