Hong Kong Willie
. Famoso artista americano, nato per il Movimento Verde. Tutto è iniziato in una discarica a Tampa.Artisti famosi Riciclaggio
World Famous Riciclaggio artisti del mondo, Hongkongwillie nata per il riutilizzo .
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Tutto è iniziato in una discarica a Tampa.
. Hongkongwillie (Joe Brown) che vivono in una discarica, (provincia di dump) sulla Hwy Gunn Tampa in Florida .
TI mai per Get The Name Hongkongwillie
Riutilizzo famoso art. Gallerie d'arte Tampa Hongkongwillie art.
. Artista nato per questo tempo, viveva in una discarica come un bambino. Riutilizzo diventato il modo di vivere. Per leggere la storia dalla nascita del Nome Hongkongwillie. . Famoso, dalle dichiarazioni umili formano il Key West Citizen , arte vitale della riutilizzazione ha trovato il suo tempo. Per vivere una vita nel mondo dell'arte e di essere così fortunato di avere un impatto sociale. Gli artisti sono a restituire, il talento è quello di raccontare una storia, per fare il cambiamento. Riutilizzare è un esperienza di vita. Per ora penso al passato e la storia di Hongkongwillie,.
Hongkongwillie Art Gallery di Tampa, in un riutilizzo Art Gallery . . Artista Kim, Derek, e Giuseppe. reuse riutilizzo artista che ha vissuto la vita e sono pensati per il movimento verde in tutto il mondo. Una galleria che è nata per questo tempo. Artista vivere una vita Freegan, l'arte che fa una dichiarazione di riutilizzo sociale. Media that has a profound effect in making the word green truly a movement of reuse in the world today and the future. Media che ha un profondo effetto per rendere il verde parola un vero e proprio movimento di riutilizzo nel mondo di oggi e del futuro.
Reuse artist. Riutilizzo artista.
Famous Recycling Artists, Hongkongwillie Artisti famosi Riciclaggio, Hongkongwillie
Artisti famosi Riciclaggio
USF INTERVISTA
Tampa Art Gallery
La mia volpe TAMPA BAY
Artisti famosi Riciclaggio
famous recycling artists famoso riciclaggio artisti
Black Bird of Key Largo Black Bird di Key Largo
Tampa Art Galleries Hongkongwillie Art Gallery Gallerie d'arte Tampa Hongkongwillie Art Gallery$98,000.00 USD $ 98,000.00 USD
To Buy Now click this link www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=23489576 Per acquistare subito clic su questo collegamento www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=23489576
The allurement of the winds blowing in the palm trees and the moon shining through and the “Black Bird of Key Largo” looking upon. La seduzione dei venti che soffia nel palme e la luna che splende attraverso e il "Black Bird di Key Largo", cercando al momento.
Hong Kong Willie Hong Kong Willie
**HONG KONG WILLIE artist Kim Brown , chose aged Florida sawmill stock as canvas. HONG KONG ** WILLIE artista Kim Brown , ha scelto di età compresa tra stock segheria in Florida come tela. Recovered Brass Hanger: Key West lobster trap rigging. Recuperati Brass Hanger: Key West rigging aragosta trappola. Originally connects and suspends rigging of spiny lobster traps in Key West waters. Originariamente collega e sospende manovre di trappole per aragoste a Key West acque. Candy-like appearance due to multiple protective layers. aspetto Candy-come a causa di molteplici strati di protezione. Assigned number in artist register by Fisherman ID tag, corresponding burn-etched # rear of piece. Numero di assegnazione nel registro artista da tag Fisherman ID, corrispondente posteriore burn-# inciso del brano. Key recovered by Robert Jordan , acclaimed treasure hunter: also in identification of piece and artist. Key recuperato da Robert Jordan , cacciatore di tesori acclamato: anche per l'identificazione del brano e artista.
*Prior to shipping, final coating will be applied to each piece. * Prima della spedizione, il rivestimento finale sarà applicato ad ogni pezzo.
Dimensions: Dimensioni:
24″ L 24 "L
8″ W 8 "W
4″ H 4 "H
Weight: 17+ LB Peso: 17 + LB
Green Art For Sale Green Art For Sale
Dorado The Dolphin Dorado Il Delfino
Original Originale
Hong Kong Wilie Art Hong Kong Art Wilie
$4600.00 USD BUY NOW IF YOU PLEASE CLINK www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=vl_other_2&listing_… $ 4.600,00 USD ACQUISTA se vi piace Clink www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=vl_other_2&listing_ ...From hongkongwillie Da hongkongwillie
$4600.00 USD BUY NOW IF YOU PLEASE CLINK www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=vl_other_2&listing_… $ 4.600,00 USD ACQUISTA se vi piace Clink www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=vl_other_2&listing_ ...
Tampa Artist,Famous Tampa Artist. Tampa Artista, Artista Tampa Famous. Famous Recycling Artists Artisti famosi Riciclaggio
This is a excerpt from a study of the landfill Hongkongwillie (joe brown) lived on. Landfills are not the solution to our waste. Questo è un estratto da uno studio della discarica Hongkongwillie (Joe Brown) a vivere. discariche non sono la soluzione ai nostri rifiuti. Follow this link Seguite questo link
Gunn Highway Landfill Gunn Highway discariche
The Gunn Highway Landfill is located off Gunn Highway in Tampa, Hillsborough County, Florida. La Gunn Highway discarica si trova al largo Gunn autostrada a Tampa, in Hillsborough County, in Florida. The county operated the landfill as a trench-type facility for the disposal of MSW from 1958 to 1962. La contea gestito la discarica come impianto di tipo a fossa per lo smaltimento dei rifiuti solidi urbani 1958-1962. The landfill disposal areas occupied approximately fifteen acres. Le aree occupate di smaltimento in discarica circa quindici ettari. After the landfill was closed, the property was subdivided and developed. Dopo che la discarica è stata chiusa, la proprietà è stato suddiviso e sviluppato. A total of thirteen apartment buildings and a clubhouse were constructed over the waste-filled areas of the landfill. Un totale di tredici edifici di appartamenti e di una club house sono stati costruiti sopra le aree piene di rifiuti della discarica. According to an investigation report by a consulting firm, see Geraghty & Miller (1996), the foundations for these structures were built as follows: Secondo un rapporto di indagine da una società di consulenza, vedere Geraghty & Miller (1996), le basi di queste strutture sono state costruite come segue:
The complex is founded on timber piles and post-tensioned concrete structural slab systems due to the subsurface conditions. Il complesso è fondata su pali in legno e post-tese in cemento sistemi strutturali lastra a causa delle condizioni del sottosuolo. The construction drawings approved by Hillsborough County for the apartment complex indicate that a synthetic membrane was to be installed beneath the slabs to block and disperse the migration of methane gas, generated by the decomposition of solid waste. I disegni di costruzione approvato dalla contea di Hillsborough per il complesso di appartamenti indicano che una membrana sintetica è stata da installare sotto le lastre di bloccare e disperdere la migrazione di gas metano, generato dalla decomposizione dei rifiuti solidi.
Even though efforts were made during construction to prevent methane gas generated by the waste from seeping into the structures, problems were discovered in the late 1980′s. Anche se sono stati compiuti sforzi per evitare che durante la costruzione del gas metano generato dai rifiuti di penetrare nelle strutture, i problemi sono stati scoperti nel tardo 1980. In addition, differential settlement of the waste has resulted in cracks in the overlying structures in spite of the attempt to establish an adequate pile foundation system for those structures. Inoltre, assestamenti differenziali dei rifiuti ha portato crepe nelle strutture sovrastanti, nonostante il tentativo di stabilire un adeguato sistema di fondazioni su pali per tali strutture.
Numerous investigations have been conducted at the property evaluating whether methane gas has migrated into the on-site structures and evaluating the potential for the gas to migrate off-site through utility trenches containing electrical conduits, sanitary sewers and stormwater pipes. Numerose indagini sono state condotte presso la struttura valutando se il metano è migrata nelle strutture in loco e la valutazione delle potenzialità per il gas per eseguire la migrazione off-site attraverso trincee contenenti utilità condotti elettrici, fognature sanitarie e tubi di acqua piovana. Some gas monitoring data report methane gas concentrations in the soils at levels significantly higher than 100 percent of the lower explosive limit (LEL) for methane. Alcuni dati di monitoraggio del gas metano relazione le concentrazioni di gas nei suoli a livelli significativamente superiori al 100 percento del limite inferiore di esplosività (LEL) per il metano. Methane gas has consistently been detected under the slabs at the clubhouse and at many of the apartment buildings. Il gas metano è sempre stato individuato sotto le lastre alla clubhouse e in molti dei condomini. Fortunately, methane gas has not been detected in the first floor apartments. Fortunatamente, il gas metano non è stato rilevato negli appartamenti al primo piano. Additional ventilation has been added to on-site structures and concrete floors have been resealed to try and minimize the risks from methane gas accumulation. ventilazione supplementare è stato aggiunto in loco di strutture e pavimenti in calcestruzzo sono state sigillate per cercare di ridurre al minimo i rischi da accumulo di gas metano. While investigators now believe that the levels of methane gas are decreasing at the site, indicating that the Gunn Highway Landfill may have passed its peak methane generation rate, gas monitoring is still continuing and is likely to be required for many more years. Mentre gli investigatori ritengono che i livelli di gas metano sono in calo nel sito, indicando che la Gunn Highway discarica potrebbe avere superato il suo picco di produzione di metano, il monitoraggio del gas è ancora in corso ed è probabile che sarà necessario per molti anni ancora.
Recycling as a Lifestyle and a Business Riciclaggio come stile di vita e di un Business
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Chris Futrell, Florida Focus Chris Futrell, Focus Florida
TAMPA, Fla. – Have you ever seen the building on the corner of Fletcher and I-75 with a bunch of buoys strung everywhere? TAMPA, Fla. - Avete mai visto l'edificio all'angolo di Fletcher e I-75 con un mazzo di boe infilate dappertutto? This small business that many think is an old bait n' tackle shop is actually Hong Kong Willie. Questa piccola impresa che molti pensano sia negozio affrontare un n esca vecchio 'è in realtà di Hong Kong Willie.
Derek Brown, 26, and his family own and operate Hong Kong Willie. Derek Brown, 26 anni, e la sua famiglia possiedono e gestiscono Hong Kong Willie. The little shop specializes in preservation art. Il piccolo negozio specializzato in arte conservazione. The artists don't take preservation too lightly either. Gli artisti non prendere troppo alla leggera o conservazione.
“99 percent of everything that has gone into a piece of art has been recycled and reused,” Brown said. "99 per cento di tutto ciò che è andato in un pezzo d'arte è stato riciclato e riutilizzato," ha detto Brown.
Just as unique as the art is, so is the company's name. Proprio come unico come l'arte, così è il nome della società. Brown says the name was created by his father, Joe Brown, in the 1950s. Brown dice il nome è stato creato da suo padre, Joe Brown, nel 1950.
“My father being in an art class, being affected by a teacher, they were melting Gerber baby food bottles,” Brown said. "Mio padre era in un corso d'arte, essere colpiti da un insegnante, andasse a sciogliersi Gerber bottiglie di alimenti per l'infanzia," ha detto Brown. “The teacher interjected that Hong Kong had a great reuse and recycling program even then.” "L'insegnante intervenne che Hong Kong ha avuto un grande riutilizzo e programma di riciclaggio anche allora."
Brown's father then took that concept and later added the Americanized name Willie to the end. padre Brown, poi ha preso quel concetto e poi aggiunto il nome americanizzato Willie fino alla fine. And that's how Hong Kong Willie was born as a location that offers recycling in a different and creative way. Ed è così che Hong Kong Willie è nato come un luogo che offre il riciclo in un modo diverso e creativo.
Hong Kong Willie artists are what are known as freegans. Hong Kong artisti Willie sono ciò che sono noti come freegans. Freegans are less concerned with materialistic things and more concerned about reducing consumption to lessen the footprint humans leave on this planet. Freegans sono meno interessati alle cose materialistiche e più preoccupato per la riduzione del consumo per ridurre l'impronta di lasciare l'uomo su questo pianeta.
“I'm sure everyone has their own perception of a freegan, possibly jumping into a dumpster or picking up something on the side of the road,” Brown said. "Sono tutti abbiano la propria percezione di un Freegan, possibilmente saltando in un cassonetto o prendere qualcosa dall'altra parte della strada", ha detto Brown. “There [are] people who will have excess. "Ci [sono] persone che hanno in eccesso. There [are] also things that can be trash to one man, but art or a prize to another man.” Ci [sono] anche cose che possono essere trash di un uomo, ma d'arte o un premio a un altro uomo ".
Brown and his family carry this practice through to their art. Brown e la sua famiglia portare questa pratica fino alla loro arte. It's his family's way of life, turning trash, which would otherwise fill up landfills, into an art form. È il modo della sua famiglia di vita, trasformando rifiuti, che altrimenti si riempiono le discariche, in una forma d'arte.
The Brown family gets a lot of their inspiration for their art from the Florida Keys. La famiglia Brown riceve molta della loro ispirazione per la loro arte dalla Florida Keys. In fact, this is where the deluge of buoys wrapping around the 'Buoys Tree' came from, the fishermen of Key West. In realtà, questo è dove il diluvio di boe avvolgono il 'Boe Tree' proviene, i pescatori di Key West.
“It is Styrofoam, we understand that it does not degrade, but to blame the fishermen for their livelihood wouldn't be correct, instead we find a usage for those,” Brown said. "Si tratta di Styrofoam, capiamo che non si degrada, ma la colpa dei pescatori per la loro sussistenza non sarebbe corretto, invece troviamo un utilizzo per tali", ha detto Brown.
Brown said there's a usage for everything, even the hooks to hold the painted driftwood, which are also salvaged, to the wall are old bent forks. Brown ha detto che c'è un utilizzo per tutto, anche i ganci per contenere i legni dipinti, che sono anche di recupero, al muro sono vecchi forcella piegata. Everything's reused here. Tutto è riutilizzato qui. Purses made out of old coffee bean sacks to “kitschy,” as Brown described it, jewelry made from old baseballs. Borse fatta di vecchi sacchi di caffè in grani di "kitsch", come Brown ha descritto, gioielli realizzati da baseball vecchio.
“Hong Kong Willie truly believes that a piece, whether it's a bag or a painted artwork, it's meant for one person.” "Hong Kong Willie crede davvero che un pezzo, che si tratti di una borsa o un dipinto d'arte, che ha significato per una persona."
Here is a Few Articles On
Famous Recycling Artist.
Hong Kong Willie
John 3:16
16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
New Tampa Patch
By Tristram DeRoma
The Story Behind the Eye-Catching Art at I-75 Exit 266 Tampa Florida
Folk artist Joe Brown, better known as "Hong Kong Willie," makes art with a message at his home/studio near
I-75 Exit 266 Tampa Florida
Sometimes, it’s the smallest experiences that have the biggest impact on a person’s life.
While attending an art class in 1958 at the age of 8, Tampa folk artist Joe Brown recalled being mesmerized by the lesson. It involved transforming a Gerber baby bottle into a piece of art.
“The Gerber bottle had no intrinsic value at all,” he said. “But when (the instructor) got through with me that day, she made me see how something so (valueless) can be valuable.”
By the time class was over, Brown learned many other lessons, too, such as the importance of volunteerism, recycling, reuse and giving back to the community. He recalled being impressed by the teacher's volunteer work in Hiroshima, Japan, helping atomic bomb survivors.
"One of the last words she ever spoke to me about that was, ‘When I left, I left out of Hong Kong,’ ” he said. After turning that over in his young brain for awhile, he decided to use it in a nickname, adding the name “Willie” a year later.
You've probably seen Hong Kong Willie's eye-catching home/gallery/studio at Fletcher Avenue and Interstate 75. But what is the story of the man behind all those buoys and discarded objects turned into art?
Brown practiced his creative skills through his younger years. But as an adult, he managed to amass a small fortune working in the materials management industry. By the the '80s, he left the business world and decided to concentrate on his art. He spent some years in the Florida Keys honing his craft and building his reputation as a folk artist. He also bought some land in Tampa near Morris Bridge Road and Fletcher Avenue where he and his family still call home.
Brown purchased the land just after the entrances and exits to I-75 were built. He said he was once offered more than $1 million for the land by a restaurant. He turned it down, he said, preferring instead to make part of the property into a studio and gallery for the creations he and his family put together.
And all of it is made of what most people would consider “trash.” Pieces of driftwood, burlap bags, doll heads, rope — anything that comes Brown’s way becomes part of his vocabulary of expression, and, in turn, becomes something else, which makes a tour of his property somewhat of a visual adventure. What at first seems like a random menagerie of glass, driftwood and pottery suddenly comes together in one's brain to form something completely different. One moment nothing, the next a powerful statement about 9/11.
One Man's Trash ...
Trash? There is no such thing, Brown seems to say through his art.
He keeps a blog about his art at hongkongwillie.blogspot.com. He also sells his creations through the Website Etsy.com.
In his shop, he has fashioned many smaller items out of driftwood, burlap bags and other materials into signs, purses, totes, bird feeder hangars and yard sculptures.
He sells a lot to the regular influx of University of South Florida parents and students every year who are are at first intrigued by the “buoy tree” and the odd-looking building they see as they take Exit 266 off I-75.
Brown Sells More Than Art
Of course, the real locals know Brown’s place for the quality of his worms.
If there’s one thing that Brown knows does well in the ground, it’s the Florida redworm, something he enthusiastically promotes, selling the indigenous species to customers for use in their compost piles. Some of his customers say his worms are just as good at the end of a fishing hook, though.
“To be honest, what made me come here is that they had scriptures on the top of his bait cans,” said customer John Brin. “Plus, they have good service. They’re nice and they’re kind, and they treat you like family.”
Though Brin knows Brown sells them mostly for composting, he said they are great for catching blue gill, sand perch and other local favorites. He also added that he likes getting his worms from Brown “because his bait stays alive longer than any other baits I’ve used.”
For prices and amounts, he has another blog dedicated just to worms.
Of course, many people also stop by to buy the smaller pieces of art that he and his family create: purses made of burlap, welcome signs made of driftwood, planters and other items lining the walls of his store.
He’s also helped put his mark on the decor of local establishments too, such as Gaspar’s Patio, 8448 N. 56th st.
Owner Jimmy Ciaccio said that when it came time to redecorate the restaurant several years ago, there was only one person to call for the assignment, and that was his good friend Brown.
"I’ve known Joe all my life, and we always had a good chemistry together,” Ciaccio said. "He’s very creative and fun to be around, and that’s how it all came about.”
Ciaccio says he still gets compliments all the time for the restaurant’s atmosphere he created using the “trash” supplied by Brown. He describes the style as a day at the beach, like a visit to Old Key West. “They’re so inspired, they want to decorate their own homes this way,” he said.
It’s that kind of testimony that makes Brown feel good, knowing that others, too, are inspired to create instead of throw away when they see his work. He simply lets his work speak for itself.
“Somebody once told me to keep telling the story and they will keep coming," he said, "and they always do."
While attending an art class in 1958 at the age of 8, Tampa folk artist Joe Brown recalled being mesmerized by the lesson. It involved transforming a Gerber baby bottle into a piece of art.
“The Gerber bottle had no intrinsic value at all,” he said. “But when (the instructor) got through with me that day, she made me see how something so (valueless) can be valuable.”
By the time class was over, Brown learned many other lessons, too, such as the importance of volunteerism, recycling, reuse and giving back to the community. He recalled being impressed by the teacher's volunteer work in Hiroshima, Japan, helping atomic bomb survivors.
"One of the last words she ever spoke to me about that was, ‘When I left, I left out of Hong Kong,’ ” he said. After turning that over in his young brain for awhile, he decided to use it in a nickname, adding the name “Willie” a year later.
You've probably seen Hong Kong Willie's eye-catching home/gallery/studio at Fletcher Avenue and Interstate 75. But what is the story of the man behind all those buoys and discarded objects turned into art?
Brown practiced his creative skills through his younger years. But as an adult, he managed to amass a small fortune working in the materials management industry. By the the '80s, he left the business world and decided to concentrate on his art. He spent some years in the Florida Keys honing his craft and building his reputation as a folk artist. He also bought some land in Tampa near Morris Bridge Road and Fletcher Avenue where he and his family still call home.
Brown purchased the land just after the entrances and exits to I-75 were built. He said he was once offered more than $1 million for the land by a restaurant. He turned it down, he said, preferring instead to make part of the property into a studio and gallery for the creations he and his family put together.
And all of it is made of what most people would consider “trash.” Pieces of driftwood, burlap bags, doll heads, rope — anything that comes Brown’s way becomes part of his vocabulary of expression, and, in turn, becomes something else, which makes a tour of his property somewhat of a visual adventure. What at first seems like a random menagerie of glass, driftwood and pottery suddenly comes together in one's brain to form something completely different. One moment nothing, the next a powerful statement about 9/11.
One Man's Trash ...
Trash? There is no such thing, Brown seems to say through his art.
He keeps a blog about his art at hongkongwillie.blogspot.com. He also sells his creations through the Website Etsy.com.
In his shop, he has fashioned many smaller items out of driftwood, burlap bags and other materials into signs, purses, totes, bird feeder hangars and yard sculptures.
He sells a lot to the regular influx of University of South Florida parents and students every year who are are at first intrigued by the “buoy tree” and the odd-looking building they see as they take Exit 266 off I-75.
Brown Sells More Than Art
Of course, the real locals know Brown’s place for the quality of his worms.
If there’s one thing that Brown knows does well in the ground, it’s the Florida redworm, something he enthusiastically promotes, selling the indigenous species to customers for use in their compost piles. Some of his customers say his worms are just as good at the end of a fishing hook, though.
“To be honest, what made me come here is that they had scriptures on the top of his bait cans,” said customer John Brin. “Plus, they have good service. They’re nice and they’re kind, and they treat you like family.”
Though Brin knows Brown sells them mostly for composting, he said they are great for catching blue gill, sand perch and other local favorites. He also added that he likes getting his worms from Brown “because his bait stays alive longer than any other baits I’ve used.”
For prices and amounts, he has another blog dedicated just to worms.
Of course, many people also stop by to buy the smaller pieces of art that he and his family create: purses made of burlap, welcome signs made of driftwood, planters and other items lining the walls of his store.
He’s also helped put his mark on the decor of local establishments too, such as Gaspar’s Patio, 8448 N. 56th st.
Owner Jimmy Ciaccio said that when it came time to redecorate the restaurant several years ago, there was only one person to call for the assignment, and that was his good friend Brown.
"I’ve known Joe all my life, and we always had a good chemistry together,” Ciaccio said. "He’s very creative and fun to be around, and that’s how it all came about.”
Ciaccio says he still gets compliments all the time for the restaurant’s atmosphere he created using the “trash” supplied by Brown. He describes the style as a day at the beach, like a visit to Old Key West. “They’re so inspired, they want to decorate their own homes this way,” he said.
It’s that kind of testimony that makes Brown feel good, knowing that others, too, are inspired to create instead of throw away when they see his work. He simply lets his work speak for itself.
“Somebody once told me to keep telling the story and they will keep coming," he said, "and they always do."
Tampa gallery practices the art of creative reuse
The year was 1958. Joe Brown, 8, lived next to a county dump site in Tampa, Fla. Brown found old junk, fixed it up and sold it. Brown knew he had a higher calling in life — he was destined to be an artist.
Brown, who is now 60, makes art from trash at his Hong Kong Willie Art Gallery. He has embellished the outside of the gallery with splashes of Caribbean-color paint and found objects reminiscent of Key West.
Brown
is as colorful as the gallery — he wears a bright tropical shirt with
red, white and blue plaid shorts. Patrons tell him they can smell the
salt water when they drive up. The gallery, however, is perched inland
near Morris Bridge Road and Interstate 75 where a rusty-hair hen named
Fred, first thought to be a rooster, patrols the property. Fred,
abandoned five years ago by tourists, trots between the gallery and
adjacent hotel leaving a trail of droppings behind her.
Brown
lived on the Gunn Highway Landfill from 1958 to 1963. The Hillsborough
County landfill operated for four years and was closed in 1962. “It was
astounding how quick they could fill the 15 acres in pits that were
enormous,” Brown said.
An
apartment complex now sits on top of the old landfill. A report by the
Florida Department of Environmental Protection indicated that a lining
was placed underneath the complex when it was built to block methane gas from leaking. The gas is a byproduct of rotting garbage.
As a child, Brown
lived on his father’s dairy and beef farm. Brown said during heavy
rain, the low land on the farm flooded the neighboring Gunn Highway. In
1957, Hillsborough County officials offered to elevate the low land to
stop the flooding by turning it into a landfill. When the property was
sold in 1984 by Brown’s father, soil testing revealed heaps of old paper
and punctured cans of spray paint.
“They
dug up and took out newspapers like the day they were put in,” Brown
said. “It reminded me of nuclear bombs that were going to go off. They
dumped everything in the landfill.”
As
a child, Brown foraged at nearby dumpsters. County workers saved junk
for him that people dropped off. One day, Brown’s parents got a call
from his elementary school teacher and told them that Brown had $100 in
his pocket and that he must be stealing.
Brown
picked up the saved junk after school and turned it into something new.
Contrary to his elementary school teacher’s accusation, he wasn’t a
thief after all. Instead he was a young entrepreneur who sold other
people’s trash.
“There was so much excess coming into the landfill,” Brown said. “There was so much waste from our society.”
However,
Brown’s mother wanted him to pursue his talents and dreams, not money.
But he developed a business sense during his young junk collecting days
and told his mother, “I’m not going to be an artist. I’ve read that
artists starve to death.”
Brown’s
mother became concerned. He said his mother knew “the value of
happiness and the travels of life” and sent him to a summer art class.
The
art teacher inspired awe in Brown. She taught him how to reuse baby
food jars by melting the glass and adding marbles to the mix to create
paper weights. The teacher had traveled to Hong Kong, China and
Hiroshima, Japan after World War II. She saw how people were forced to
recycle and reuse items out of necessity after the war. This left an
impression on Brown.
It
was at this time that he personified the name Hong Kong Willie, which
harkens back to China where the mass production of merchandise occurs.
The “Willies” are people like Brown and other environmentalists who try
to reuse trash instead of throwing it into landfills.
After
high school, Brown went to college to study business but dropped out
after three years. He worked in the material handling industry until
1981. Although Brown had achieved a successful career and lifestyle, he
had become discouraged in 1979.
“The change came from knowing that I had come to the point of what people call success,” Brown said. “I wasn’t happy inside.”
He
had been diagnosed with depression in 1973, a condition that was caused
from high fructose intake and that lasted for more than four years.
In
1985, Brown and his artist wife, Kim, bought the half-acre property off
Fletcher Avenue and Morris Bridge Road. For two decades the two small
wooden shacks, built around 1965, that now house the gallery operated as
a bait and tackle shop.
Nowadays,
Brown raises and sells worms by the pound mainly for composting. He
recycled 250 thousand pounds in the worm bed in 2009. Brown still sells
the worms for $3.50 a cup for fishing.
In
1981, Brown resurrected the Hong Kong Willie name from his childhood
art class. In the early 1980s, both he and his wife, Kim, began
upcycling trash into art. Brown entered another world when he left his
mainstream lifestyle behind — he joined the art scene and booked rock
bands at the same time.
The
Brown family spent half their time in Tampa and the other half in a
small home on Boot Key Harbor in Marathon. Brown gained the reputation
of the Key West lobster buoy artist.
“I had a total different appearance when in Key West,” Brown said. “I used to have hair down to my waist.”
When Brown came back to Tampa, he lived in the woods for months at a time, much like Henry David Thoreau in “Walden,” who had lived a simple lifestyle in a one room cabin near Walden Pond in Concord, Mass.
Back
in Key West, Brown became friends with local fishermen. He and others
organized efforts to clean up plastic foam buoys that had collected in
the waterways from years of fishing.
“You would go and find buoys floating in the mangroves, up on the shore and they had trashed up everything,” Brown said.
The
Earth Resource Foundation reports that plastic foam is dumped into the
environment. It breaks up into pieces and chokes animals by clogging
their digestive system.
Brown
sells the buoys from the Hong Kong Willie Art Gallery for $2.00 a
piece. He said he has sold from 30 to 40 thousand buoys in the last ten
years. Some of the buoys are more than 50 years old and are collected by
tourists from China and Japan.
“If
you go to the Keys right now and you see a buoy floating, you’ll see
someone slam on the brakes to get it,” Brown said. “They’re the most
prized buoys of the world.”
Brown
made a holiday buoy tree 12 years ago from the Key West buoys. Hundreds
of buoys are strung on rope and wrapped around a utility pole next to
the gallery. Brown hopes the novelty of the buoy tree will inspire and
stimulate children to find new ways to reduce, reuse and recycle
garbage.
In
Kate Shoup’s “Rubbish! Reuse Your Refuse,” the author said much of what
we get is designed to be scrapped after only a few uses. We easily
throw away pens, lighters, razors and dozens of other items. Shoup said
Americans consume 2 million plastic drink bottles every 5 minutes.
Likewise,
Brown finds uses for items that would otherwise end up in a landfill.
He buys used burlap bags from coffee and peanut producers. He sells them
to the U.S. National Forestry Service for the collection of pine seeds
and Samuel Adams for hops production.
Brown and his wife, Kim, also make art hippie bags from the burlap sacks and sell them in the gallery. Kim,
also an artist, paints fish, turtles, crows, parrots and the like on
driftwood and on wood that Brown has salvaged from saw mills and from
old buildings in Key West.
Brown
said art is viewed and appreciated by certain people. “If it all came
out the same, it would be like bland grits all the time,” Brown said. He
likes to refer to the gallery art as reused rather than recycled, which
takes waste and turns it into an inferior product. Reuse on the other
hand involves remaking an item and using it again for the same intended
purpose.
“I
also try to stay away from imprinting a definite use for a definite
item,” Brown said. He explains that 2-liter bottles are not limited to
making bird feeders. The bottles can be used for art and craft projects
as well.
Brown said the larger message he wants to communicate is that the disposal of garbage today is creating a toxic environment.
“I still have the original Gerber baby food bottle that I melted” Brown said. “It’s sitting on my mom’s little table.”
View photographs of the Hong Kong Willie art gallery
http://kerryschofieldjournal.blogspot.com/2010/09/hong-kong-willie-photomontage.html
"Black Bird of Key Largo"
The allurement of the winds blowing in the palm trees and the moon shining through and the "Black Bird of Key Largo" looking upon.
Hong Kong Willie
**HONG KONG WILLIE artist Kim Brown, chose aged Florida sawmill stock as canvas. Recovered Brass Hanger: Key West lobster trap rigging. Originally connects and suspends rigging of spiny lobster traps in Key West waters. Candy-like appearance due to multiple protective layers. Assigned number in artist register by Fisherman ID tag, corresponding burn-etched # rear of piece. Key recovered by Robert Jordan, acclaimed treasure hunter: also in identification of piece and artist.
Dimensions:
24" L
8" W
4" H
Weight: 17+ LB
Hong Kong Willie photomontage
I'm
working on a feature story about Hong Kong Willie aka Joe Brown and
family who are reuse artists. I recently spent some time interviewing Joe Brown at his studio in Tampa, Fla. We had a pleasant talk about his
working gallery. We sat outside and there was a nice breeze, although it
was a warm sunny day still here in Florida. Join me in the midst of
writing the story. I took a few pictures to share with you. Enjoy.
Hong Kong Willie family art gallery.
Reuse artists from the 1960s.
Morris Bridge Road and Interstate 75, Tampa, Fla.
The garden shrubbery consists of recycled glass bottles and aloe vera plants.
Hundreds of lobster buoys from Key West, Fla., strung on rope,
wrapped and tied to a utility pole.
Hong Kong Willie orange helicopter that once served in
Vietnam and later used by a radio station.
Key West lobster buoys hang from the small 1950s wood frame building.
Tourists buy the buoys for souvenirs. Some of the buoys are 50 years old.
The exterior of the roadside building is an artful blend of
Caribbean-color paint and found objects.
Seabird plaques, sea glass, melted bottles, painted driftwood
and rusty objects are a few of the items that decorate the wood panels.
Entrance into the small building, which is lined from ceiling to floor
with burlap sacks from South American coffee roasters.
Joe Brown and family also composts and sells worms.
Patrons buy worms for fishing and composting.
They also buy South American burlap coffee bean sacks.
Hong Kong Willie reuse artists ,reuse the burlap
and make hippie beach bags.
Hong Kong Willie reuse artists use old clothes, buttons, baseball leather and
yarns to sew and decorate the burlap bags.
View photographs of the Hong Kong Willie art gallery
http://kerryschofieldjournal.blogspot.com/2010/09/hong-kong-willie-photomontage.html
Black Bird of Key Largo
$98,000 To buy click this link
The allurement of the winds blowing in the palm trees and the moon shining through and the "Black Bird of Key Largo" looking upon.
Hong Kong Willie
**HONG KONG WILLIE artist Kim Brown, chose aged Florida sawmill stock as canvas. Recovered Brass Hanger: Key West lobster trap rigging. Originally connects and suspends rigging of spiny lobster traps in Key West waters. Candy-like appearance due to multiple protective layers. Assigned number in artist register by Fisherman ID tag, corresponding burn-etched # rear of piece. Key recovered by Robert Jordan, acclaimed treasure hunter: also in identification of piece and artist.
Dimensions:
24" L
8" W
4" H
Weight: 17+ LB
Tampa Art Gallery,MY FOX TAMPA BAY,Charlie's World Fox News
Tampa Art Galleries,Florida Focus
Tampa Art Galleries,Florida FocusRecycling as a Lifestyle and a Business
TAMPA, Fla. – Have you ever seen the building on the corner of
Fletcher and I-75 with a bunch of buoys strung everywhere? This small
business that many think is an old bait n’ tackle shop is actually Hong
Kong Willie.
Derek Brown, 26, and his family own and operate Hong Kong Willie.
The little shop specializes in preservation art. The artists don’t take
preservation too lightly either.
“99 percent of everything that has gone into a piece of art has been recycled and reused,” Brown said.
Just as unique as the art is, so is the company’s name. Brown says
the name was created by his father, Joe Brown, in the 1950s.
“My father being in an art class, being affected by a teacher, they
were melting Gerber baby food bottles," Brown said. "The teacher
interjected that Hong Kong had a great reuse and recycling program even
then.”
Brown's father then took that concept and later added the
Americanized name Willie to the end. And that's how Hong Kong Willie
was born as a location that offers recycling in a different and
creative way.
Hong Kong Willie artists are what are known as freegans. Freegans
are less concerned with materialistic things and more concerned about
reducing consumption to lessen the footprint humans leave on this
planet.
“I’m sure everyone has their own perception of a freegan, possibly
jumping into a dumpster or picking up something on the side of the
road,” Brown said. “There [are] people who will have excess. There
[are] also things that can be trash to one man, but art or a prize to
another man.”
Brown and his family carry this practice through to their art. It’s
his family’s way of life, turning trash, which would otherwise fill up
landfills, into an art form.
The Brown family gets a lot of their inspiration for their art from
the Florida Keys. In fact, this is where the deluge of buoys wrapping
around the ‘Buoys Tree’ came from, the fishermen of Key West.
“It is Styrofoam, we understand that it does not degrade, but to
blame the fishermen for their livelihood wouldn’t be correct, instead
we find a usage for those,” Brown said.
Brown said there’s a usage for everything, even the hooks to hold
the painted driftwood, which are also salvaged, to the wall are old
bent forks. Everything’s reused here. Purses made out of old coffee
bean sacks to “kitschy,” as Brown described it, jewelry made from old
baseballs.
“Hong Kong Willie truly believes that a piece, whether it’s a bag or a painted artwork, it’s meant for one person.”
It,(was the dump) that had all this media, and a young enterprising mind. Not enough time to capture it all.
click to enlarge
Drive south on I-75, look to the right around East Fletcher
Avenue, and you can't miss it. The tree appears first, hundreds of
buoys wrapped around its branches, resembling a sort of Dr. Seuss-ian
Christmas ornament. Then the rest of the 20,000 buoys come into view --
thousands of strands of the multicolored foam balls stretching from the
tree to two wooden shacks, hanging from their roofs and walls, and
stretched out over the property.
Strewn about the lawn is a menagerie of surfboards, car doors, CB radios, wooden sculptures and painted signs. A 1979 Ford pickup sits in the front driveway, painted with a rainbow of colors, four racks of antlers affixed to its roof. An old stuffed caribou sits in a lawn chair beckoning visitors.
Of the thousands of motorists who pass by this eclectic landmark off Exit 266 every day, few stop in the funky gift shop and Key West-themed folk art gallery that is Hong Kong Willie's. But this is not your typical roadside store selling cheesy Florida magnets and beach T-shirts (although they have those, too). From the moment the owners come out to greet you, it's clear that for them this isn't just a business -- it's a lifestyle.
As I step out of my car, Joe Brown ambles toward me wearing a red Hawaiian shirt and khaki shorts. With his disheveled shoulder-length brown hair and strong jaw line, Brown, 56, looks a lot like Mel Gibson in Braveheart. He ends most of his sentences with "Do you follow me?" and stares with wild gray eyes until you nod in agreement. His 46-year-old wife, Kim, who bears a strong resemblance to Grace Slick, sits near the shop's open sign, branding her latest creation. Wearing large sunglasses, she gives a smile, hardly looking up.
Joe and Kim -- Tampa natives -- bought the half-acre property off Fletcher Avenue and Morris Bridge Road in 1985. For the next two decades, the Browns operated A-24 Hour Bait and Tackle, living on the premises and bagging worms for K-Mart and Wal-Mart to make a few extra bucks. But in 2001, they decided to abandon fish food to pursue the fickle business of art, although they will tell you Hong Kong Willie's was always "part of the journey."
"We were artists," says Joe. "We were born that way. We had no choice. You follow me?"
The underlying theme of Hong Kong Willie's is creating art out of objects destined for the landfill, and while browsing the items, I get the feeling the Browns are trying to make a point rather than a sale.
"Thirty percent of the gifts given will be in the dumpster by next Christmas," Joe says. "Most Christmas gifts will be given because they think they have to. Very few will have a social impact."
Every item at Hong Kong Willie's is either art made out of an object destined for the landfill or products that other companies were throwing away and the Browns retrieved before they made it to the dumpster. But don't call this recycled art. The Browns prefer "preservation."
Recycling implies the material will be used for the same purpose. "If you get stuck in that word, then you get stuck in that form," Joe explains. Instead, the Browns create a whole new use for an item that would have been otherwise thrown away.
Kim looks up from her painting after Joe finishes his long ramble. "We've always been able to take nothing and make something out of it," she says.
Although most people assume Joe is "Hong Kong Willie," he says the name refers to the origin of junk: Hong Kong produces much of the useless merchandise that Americans buy and quickly throw away, he says. So it's up to the Willies of the world -- i.e. the Browns and other conservationists -- to find new uses for the trash.
"All of us who believe what we believe is Hong Kong Willie," Joe says.
The gift shop is a space not much bigger than a tool shed, cluttered with handmade candles, pottery, ceramic figures and deer skulls painted tie-dye style. Joe, who's not content to allow me to wander by myself, darts from item to item, sharing each one's origins. One of the first objects he shows me is an old scuba tank cut in half, stenciled with yellow and purple spray paint with a weighted rope attached on the inside. What would have been a heavy addition to a landfill or junkyard, the Browns now sell as a nautical-themed bell. Another popular item: a used Starbucks Frappuccino bottle filled with sand and shells, and the words "Florida Beachfront Property" written in paint on it.
"Is it really pragmatic to say this had one life -- to have Frappuccino in it?" he says, holding up the $3 gift. "That's not true. You follow me?"
Joe picks up a droopy glass vase -- the result of an Arizona Ice Tea bottle stuck in a kiln for too long. He says it's a collector's item: Only 300 were made and none look alike.
"People really want something that is one of a kind and something that means something," he says, holding up the vase and pointing to a stack of Beanie Babies. "Which one is the real collectible? The one that cannot be copied or the one that is mass-produced just on a small scale? You follow me?"
Most of the materials the Browns work with come from Key West. Every few months they hop in the pickup, drive the 425 miles to the Keys and start looking for the junk no one else wants: used dive tanks, the lobster trap buoys, burlap bags and even old wooden planks from ships or homes destroyed by storms.
In fact, the latter is one of their biggest sellers. They bring back an imperfect piece of lumber, slap some urethane on it and Kim paints everything from colorful fish and birds to old Key West landmarks on it. Every piece is branded, marked with a lobster cage tag and affixed with brass rings or forks with which to hang them. In the building opposite the gift shop, among stuffed animals and fish (Joe was once a taxidermist), 30 of these painted planks hang from the walls.
Customers are few at Hong Kong Willie's, but the Browns say they're doing well. They never try to push their art on anyone, figuring that if someone stops and buys something, it was meant to be. ("A piece of art is a love affair," Kim says.) They count Gaspar's Patio Bar and Grille in Temple Terrace as one of their best customers. Their other business comes from Tampa residents looking to add a tiki feel to their backyards. Among Joe's most popular creations are old car doors outfitted with waterproof speakers. A few Key West bars bought the unique sound systems to hang from their ceilings.
But the Browns are not just content to sell their art to passersby -- they want to live the ideals that inspire their art. The couple is working on getting their business off the electrical grid and powered completely by solar energy. Kim wants to start a coffee and ice cream shop with free wireless Internet to bring in likeminded people. Joe wants to be in the Guinness Book of World Records for hanging the greatest number of buoys to a structure (it's not a category yet). And they're always trying to find new uses for the trash they see lining area roads.
"We're not just sitting out here being weird," Joe says suddenly. "We're actually taking objects and making these thousands of people say, 'What's that?' We're doing it because it's the right thing to do."
His eyes get wide.
"You follow me?"
Strewn about the lawn is a menagerie of surfboards, car doors, CB radios, wooden sculptures and painted signs. A 1979 Ford pickup sits in the front driveway, painted with a rainbow of colors, four racks of antlers affixed to its roof. An old stuffed caribou sits in a lawn chair beckoning visitors.
Of the thousands of motorists who pass by this eclectic landmark off Exit 266 every day, few stop in the funky gift shop and Key West-themed folk art gallery that is Hong Kong Willie's. But this is not your typical roadside store selling cheesy Florida magnets and beach T-shirts (although they have those, too). From the moment the owners come out to greet you, it's clear that for them this isn't just a business -- it's a lifestyle.
As I step out of my car, Joe Brown ambles toward me wearing a red Hawaiian shirt and khaki shorts. With his disheveled shoulder-length brown hair and strong jaw line, Brown, 56, looks a lot like Mel Gibson in Braveheart. He ends most of his sentences with "Do you follow me?" and stares with wild gray eyes until you nod in agreement. His 46-year-old wife, Kim, who bears a strong resemblance to Grace Slick, sits near the shop's open sign, branding her latest creation. Wearing large sunglasses, she gives a smile, hardly looking up.
Joe and Kim -- Tampa natives -- bought the half-acre property off Fletcher Avenue and Morris Bridge Road in 1985. For the next two decades, the Browns operated A-24 Hour Bait and Tackle, living on the premises and bagging worms for K-Mart and Wal-Mart to make a few extra bucks. But in 2001, they decided to abandon fish food to pursue the fickle business of art, although they will tell you Hong Kong Willie's was always "part of the journey."
"We were artists," says Joe. "We were born that way. We had no choice. You follow me?"
The underlying theme of Hong Kong Willie's is creating art out of objects destined for the landfill, and while browsing the items, I get the feeling the Browns are trying to make a point rather than a sale.
"Thirty percent of the gifts given will be in the dumpster by next Christmas," Joe says. "Most Christmas gifts will be given because they think they have to. Very few will have a social impact."
Every item at Hong Kong Willie's is either art made out of an object destined for the landfill or products that other companies were throwing away and the Browns retrieved before they made it to the dumpster. But don't call this recycled art. The Browns prefer "preservation."
Recycling implies the material will be used for the same purpose. "If you get stuck in that word, then you get stuck in that form," Joe explains. Instead, the Browns create a whole new use for an item that would have been otherwise thrown away.
Kim looks up from her painting after Joe finishes his long ramble. "We've always been able to take nothing and make something out of it," she says.
Although most people assume Joe is "Hong Kong Willie," he says the name refers to the origin of junk: Hong Kong produces much of the useless merchandise that Americans buy and quickly throw away, he says. So it's up to the Willies of the world -- i.e. the Browns and other conservationists -- to find new uses for the trash.
"All of us who believe what we believe is Hong Kong Willie," Joe says.
The gift shop is a space not much bigger than a tool shed, cluttered with handmade candles, pottery, ceramic figures and deer skulls painted tie-dye style. Joe, who's not content to allow me to wander by myself, darts from item to item, sharing each one's origins. One of the first objects he shows me is an old scuba tank cut in half, stenciled with yellow and purple spray paint with a weighted rope attached on the inside. What would have been a heavy addition to a landfill or junkyard, the Browns now sell as a nautical-themed bell. Another popular item: a used Starbucks Frappuccino bottle filled with sand and shells, and the words "Florida Beachfront Property" written in paint on it.
"Is it really pragmatic to say this had one life -- to have Frappuccino in it?" he says, holding up the $3 gift. "That's not true. You follow me?"
Joe picks up a droopy glass vase -- the result of an Arizona Ice Tea bottle stuck in a kiln for too long. He says it's a collector's item: Only 300 were made and none look alike.
"People really want something that is one of a kind and something that means something," he says, holding up the vase and pointing to a stack of Beanie Babies. "Which one is the real collectible? The one that cannot be copied or the one that is mass-produced just on a small scale? You follow me?"
Most of the materials the Browns work with come from Key West. Every few months they hop in the pickup, drive the 425 miles to the Keys and start looking for the junk no one else wants: used dive tanks, the lobster trap buoys, burlap bags and even old wooden planks from ships or homes destroyed by storms.
In fact, the latter is one of their biggest sellers. They bring back an imperfect piece of lumber, slap some urethane on it and Kim paints everything from colorful fish and birds to old Key West landmarks on it. Every piece is branded, marked with a lobster cage tag and affixed with brass rings or forks with which to hang them. In the building opposite the gift shop, among stuffed animals and fish (Joe was once a taxidermist), 30 of these painted planks hang from the walls.
Customers are few at Hong Kong Willie's, but the Browns say they're doing well. They never try to push their art on anyone, figuring that if someone stops and buys something, it was meant to be. ("A piece of art is a love affair," Kim says.) They count Gaspar's Patio Bar and Grille in Temple Terrace as one of their best customers. Their other business comes from Tampa residents looking to add a tiki feel to their backyards. Among Joe's most popular creations are old car doors outfitted with waterproof speakers. A few Key West bars bought the unique sound systems to hang from their ceilings.
But the Browns are not just content to sell their art to passersby -- they want to live the ideals that inspire their art. The couple is working on getting their business off the electrical grid and powered completely by solar energy. Kim wants to start a coffee and ice cream shop with free wireless Internet to bring in likeminded people. Joe wants to be in the Guinness Book of World Records for hanging the greatest number of buoys to a structure (it's not a category yet). And they're always trying to find new uses for the trash they see lining area roads.
"We're not just sitting out here being weird," Joe says suddenly. "We're actually taking objects and making these thousands of people say, 'What's that?' We're doing it because it's the right thing to do."
His eyes get wide.
"You follow me?"
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