The Lardner Report: Eco-art made from pasta

: Pic #1 – Pasta Art: “Link” (detail) by Steven Simon, 2010

Dr. Atkins would probably hate this.

Steven Simon’s artwork cracks me up. You might say his latest installations are devoted to an all-carb diet. His medium is pasta. Simon is a dedicated environmentalist who uses his work to educate and inspire others—especially children–about the beauty, usefulness, and fragility of the world’s living coral reefs.

He’s also the guy who created a coral reef installation with 31,000 pieces of campanelle pasta (Pics #2 and #3 below). Each piece is hand-painted with brightly colored acrylic paint. Simon says he fell in love with campanelle’s flower-like shapes—finding them to be the most perfect, realistic way to represent rich and vibrant reef life.

PIc #2 - Pasta Art: "There" (detail) by Steven Simon, 2010

We displayed this piece as a conversation stimulating backdrop for a FORTUNE “Brainstorm: Green” Conference at the Ritz Carlton, Laguna Niguel this Spring. Now, it’s on temporary display on the lobby level of the Ritz, next to the new, way cool fluconazole environmental education center, “Ambassadors of the Environment.”

The Ritz partnered with Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ocean Futures Society to launch this unique educational program on Earth Day. Expert naturalists take guests on adventures through the natural wonders of the local seaside environment, including the kelp forests, tide-pools, and coastal bluffs.

Pic #3 Pasta Art (wide shot) "There" by Steven Simon

According to The Nature Conservancy, if the present rate of destruction continues, 70% of the world’s coral reefs will be destroyed by the year 2050–yet they are among the oldest ecosystems on Earth. Simon is hopeful his work will stimulate viewers into action in protecting our disappearing natural resources on land and in the sea.

Pictured on top, (Pic #1) Simon’s multi-colored “Link” installation, also made with pasta–from playful “bowtie” farfale, to utilitarian macaroni. The “aquarium” holding the sculptural piece is 7 feet by 7 feet, and presents a window through which viewers can peek–and wonder–how the heck did he pull this off?

Ritz “Ambassadors of the Environment” Link: http://www.oceanfutures.org/news/press-releases/ambassadors-program-open-ritz-carlton-laguna-niguel

Steven Simon link: http://www.solarsculpture.com

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