Alumni Using Found Objects, California Artist Turns Trash to Treasure Stories You May Like Tribute to Europe’s Lost Synagogues Is an Artist’s Labor of Love Digital Artist Dreams His Creations in Pixels and Neurons Artist Alum Has an Unusual Medium: Earth Itself AbandonmenTissues, which highlights garbage strewn on the Mexico border, is the latest from Alvaro Alvarez ’14, BArch ’15 By Melissa Newcomb Often, when Alvaro Alvarez ’14, BArch ’15, comes across a piece of litter like a plastic bottle or a scrap of cardboard, he doesn’t just walk past it, or pick it up and throw it out. Instead, he turns it into art. Alvarez is a trained architect whose work as an artist is largely inspired by his previous profession. A work, titled Grass Is Always Greener, from Alvarez's project using discarded objects. His latest project, AbandonmenTissues, aims to show that things we perceive as trash can become beautiful—and that problems can be potential opportunities. The work—on display in a San Diego gallery and creative space where Alvarez is an artist-in-residence for fall 2025—features 25 sculptural pieces made of found items such as metal and plastic scraps, styrofoam, paper, and cardboard packaging. AbandonmenTissues features 25 sculptural pieces made of found items such as metal and plastic scraps, styrofoam, paper, and cardboard packaging. Even the canvases they’re based on are made from discarded wood, fiberglass, flooring—or, in one case, an entire door. Alvarez’s studio is located in a commercial district of San Ysidro, CA, near the Tijuana River Valley and the border with Mexico. As he explains, debris from semi trucks driving between the two countries often litters the area—a situation his exhibit, with its simple techniques, aims to highlight. AbandonmentTissues uses a variety of objects and hues. “There are two kinds of art out there: there’s the art that few people can do, where the artist was born with a gift or developed a skill throughout their life, and then there’s the art that we all can do; it’s universal,” he says. “I want this to show people we don’t have to live with this pollution when there are things we can do about it.” I want this to show people we don’t have to live with this pollution when there are things we can do about it. In his studio, shelves overflow with the discarded items he has retrieved, sorted by material and color, and stashed away to be made into something new. Alvarez creates the artwork by arranging the 3D objects on a background and gluing scraps of found paper over them; in many of the works, he adds paint. Stories You May Like Tribute to Europe’s Lost Synagogues Is an Artist’s Labor of Love Digital Artist Dreams His Creations in Pixels and Neurons Building the Dragon Day beast his freshman year. “The paper unifies everything, because it makes it all the same color, and then I can focus on the topography,” he says. “You become stripped away from what the object used to be and just see what it is now.” After majoring in architecture in AAP, Alvarez moved to NYC, where his projects included heading up design and construction of the interiors for the 88-story residential tower at 15 Hudson Yards. You become stripped away from what the object used to be and just see what it is now. As part of his job, he’d collaborate with artists when sourcing pieces for interiors, and often toured their studios. “It was so cool to see they were making a living out of being artists, because I always had this idea that being an artist meant struggling,” recalls Alvarez, who grew up with a love of drawing buildings. “Conventional architecture helped me get closer to art.” An 'Architectural Artist' Alvarez’s style continues to be influenced by his roots in architecture, and by his native city of Tijuana. His project 46 Renacimientos, for example, comprises sculptural paintings representing nearly four dozen abandoned building projects on the Baja coast. He also draws architectural pieces that derive their intricate details from extremely small strokes of calligraphy ink or graphite, layered to create depth. “I love art that invites you in,” he says, “and lets you spend time with it, to see what else you find when you get closer and closer.” (All images provided.) Published November 24, 2025 Leave a Comment Cancel replyOnce your comment is approved, your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Class Year Email * Save my name, email, and class year in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ Other stories You may like Cornelliana It’s a Storm, It’s a Blizzard, It’s … a Big Red Snowpocalypse! Students New Student Space Devoted to Competitive Video Gaming Campus & Beyond Powered by Sound, Researchers Help Protect Animals Worldwide