CREEDE — Artists from six San Luis Valley schools and Lake City Middle School won cash prizes for entering their junk-bin beauties in the Third Annual Creede Recycled Show hosted by the Creede Recycle Club at the Creede school on Thursday, Feb. 28.
The recycle club works with MDS Waste and Recycle, who also puts together a field trip for the students to go to Denver and tour the recycling facilities there.
Winning “Best in Show” for her piece called “Phoenix,” Del Norte High School’s Nikki Jo Albert combined aluminum cans and wire to create the shape. But Albert also treated the bird’s surfaces with colors and textures to make the sculpture shimmer. MDS Waste and Recycle put up the $200 for the top prize.
Other winners splitting the $650 total payout came from Centennial Middle School, Lake City Middle School, Creede Middle School, Del Norte Middle School, Antonito High School, Del Norte High School, Monte Vista High School and Sierra Grande High School. These schools represent the southern and western sides of the San Luis Valley (and Lake City in Hinsdale County).
Creede’s C. Waters Gallery and San Juan Sports combined resources to sponsor the high school first place award, $100 to Del Norte’s Syana Colville for her piece entitled “Spulips.” Colville used discarded spoons to mimic standing tulips.
According to Gina Randolph, art teacher at Del Norte High School, the school’s 2019 MDS Waste and Recycle winners will display their pieces on campus this spring. The displays will include a range of artwork from students throughout the year, and they will gather the best pieces for a public opening. Hosted by the Rio Grande County Museum, the Del Norte K-12 Student Art Exhibition will run from 4 to 8 p.m. on May 1.
The 2019 edition marks the third year of the MDS Recycled Art Show. After a flood of 98 submissions for the 2017 show, the 2018 and 2019 events favored quality over quantity. Artists mixed media and methods to create pieces from items destined for landfill instead. “This Art is here to remind you,” Randolph indicated via email, “if you don’t want your trash to end up in our rivers and oceans, RECYCLE IT!

The 2019 MDS Recycled Art Show winners
Best in Show ($200)
Nikki Jo Albert (Del Norte High School)

High School winners
First place ($100)
Syana Colville (Del Norte High School).

Second place ($75)
Ramon Garcia (Sierra Grande High School)

Third place ($50)
Chevelle and Isaiah Garcia (Monte Vista High School)

Honorable mentions
Chandler Mondragon (Del Norte High School)
Stacy Candelaria (Antonito High School)
Meadow Fager (Del Norte High School)

Middle school winners
First place ($100)
Clifford Goldsberry, Jenna Fairchild, Lyric Stecken and Zach Romero (Creede Middle School)

Second place ($75)
Dawson Brown (Lake City)

Third place ($50)
Charley Higham (Del Norte Middle School)

Honorable mentions
Silas Fox (Lake City)
Riley Hiatt and Jeremiah Martinez (Centennial)