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Art Throb: Kim Alsbrooks

Trash to you and me is nothing more than ugly garnish on the side of the road. To Kim Alsbrooks, it’s art.

Kim Alsbrooks saw something kind of beautiful in discarded trash. The 51-year-old's claim to fame comes in the form of flattened aluminum cans with finely painted portraits of people from the 1800s: My White Trash Family. She's been featured on Juxtapose, Huffington Post and in 2012 she won The West Prize–given to select artists who are redefining art all over the world.

The South Carolina girl turned Philadelphian claims she's been an artist her entire life. She recalls having 'studio training' all the way back to the age of five, which led her to graduate from the University of Arizona with a BFA in printmaking. That was her medium of choice until one day she looked to the floor for inspiration.

She started painting portraits in 2004, and was admittedly not very good at it. Using the skills she had, she sketched out each portrait first in graphite and hand tinted them to look like old time photos—a skill she inherited while working at a portrait studio. It took her painting over 700 portraits in the span of nine years to get her to a point where she felt she had achieved a good level of skill.

My White Trash Family series began when she still lived in Charleston, South Carolina. "I was influenced by the culture there as it is very class oriented," says Kim. The series of portraits on aluminum cans, and other trash, came out of her frustration for prevailing ideologies and particularly class distinction.

Kim's artist statement on the project:

"This ideology seems to be based on a combination of myth, biased history and a bizarre sentimentality about old wars and social structures. With the juxtaposition of the portraits from museums, once painted on ivory, now on flattened trash like beer cans and fast food containers, the artist sets out to even the playing field, challenging the perception of the social elite in today's society."

On the flipside of the whole trash aspect, what really catches people's eye is her fine art portraits. "I am influenced by the 1800's. Both cities [referring to Philadelphia and Charleston] had a lot of wealth at the time. Many of the original miniatures were old families from these areas, so the resource material was already here."

"Philly has a lot of opportunities for artists, and I have been fortunate enough to showcase in some great galleries. Also, Philly has a lot of good trash!" Even though the project was considered a one-time thing, the demand for her White Trash works has kept her busy for the last 9 years.

For half a decade, she's continued honing her fine art skills while working for the Mural Arts Program as a painter. She is currently partnering with friend Paul Santoleri for a private mural in South Philly's Point Breeze neighborhood. Kim has also been given the honor of helping to restore the famous Keith Harring mural on 22nd and Ellsworth.

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