West Brighton resident transforms trash from Staten Island beaches into collages and sculptures, now on disp - SILive.com

West Brighton resident transforms trash from Staten Island beaches into collages and sculptures, now on display in Tottenville - silive.com

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — At the start of day of any given day, Gail Middleton can be found in the revitalizing energy of the sunrise, clearing a beach of debris and interesting objects left behind.

She’s managed to create unique collages and sculptures, which she showcases at “”Flotsam/Jetsam: Ocean Oddities Harvested from Staten Island Shores,” which she’s turned into an exhibit at the Conference House.

“The idea for an art exhibit started after taking a daily bag of debris off the beach,” said the artist. “The debris was removed, but I wanted to create something that would make people aware of what is found on their shores,” said the West Brighton resident.

There might not have been any pieces of value, like gold and diamond rings, the oddities took many forms — whimsical objects such as a Mermaid Barbie, a unicorn flashlight, a statue of Yemaya, a Yourba Goddess of the Sea, and sand shovels.
Beach collage: A collage of lost and found beach items is part of an exhibit at Flotsam/Jetsam: Ocean Oddities Harvested from Staten Shores up now until Dec. 31 at the Lenape Gallery at Conference House Park Visitors Center. (Courtesy of Kathryn Carse)Staten Island Advance

Along the way there were dangerous finds as well, including hypodermic needles, fishing line, tiny pieces of plastic and balloons that birds get tangled in and fish and turtles eat.

Then there were little cigar tips, golf balls, mini liquor bottles and bottle caps, and stuff that’s hard to explain including single shoes, soccer balls, a couch and a Kazakhstan driver’s license.

Not to be forgotten is gross stuff, including fish heads from anglers (not in exhibit), remains of dinners and drinking sessions.

Beach collage: A collage of lost and found beach items is part of an exhibit at Flotsam/Jetsam: Ocean Oddities Harvested from Staten Shores up now until Dec. 31 at the Lenape Gallery at Conference House Park Visitors Center. (Courtesy of Kathryn Carse)Staten Island Advance

One young visitor asked, “Why would anyone throw a good baseball in the ocean.”

“The flotsam and jetsam gets there all sorts of ways,” Middleton explains. “Some of it is left behind by beachgoers. Some of it washes in with the tide -- refuse from boats and street trash (straws and bottle caps, for example) that gets swept into our waterways during a heavy storm.”

So now, as we head into the dark winter months, Middleton asks that spectators take a detour to this bright beachy exhibit, and perhaps reflect on what we can all do to make it a cleaner place next year.

The exhibit is at the Lenape Gallery at Conference House Park Visitors Center, Satterlee St., Tottenville, daily from 1 to 5 p.m., until December 31, 2023. The exhibit was made possible through a 2023 DCLA Art Fund Grant from Staten Island Arts.

For some extra inspiration from the next generation, don’t miss the posters created by Ms. Campbell’s PS35 kindergarten class, also on display.