The Citizen (Gauteng)

Getting animated

UNORTHODOX: UPCYCLED PIECES EARN ARTIST R150 000

- Adriaan Roets Follow Joshua Behrens on Twitter @JoshBehren­sART

Josh Behrens’ recycled creations fund a study opportunit­y at leading film school.

Joshua Behrens is an “upcycler”. He’s so good at the art it will help pay his bills for a year while studying towards a diploma in animation at the prestigiou­s The Digital Animation and Visual Effects (Dave) School in Orlando, a school that helps feed young talent into the American film industry.

The school is so well represente­d in Hollywood circles (though it’s located at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida), that at the 2014 Academy Awards four of the five nominated films in the Best Visual Effects category had Dave School alumni.

Behrens received a bursary from the school after he achieved 100% in his final matric exam in art at Hill College in Port Elizabeth. He then had to think out of the box to raise the funds that would allow him to travel to and live in America for a year.

Luckily he’s no stranger to being creative. He first came to prominence at the age of 16 when he won Collect-a-Can’s annual CAN Craze Competitio­n in 2011. He created a piece on Nelson Mandela from recycled cans titled

True Greatness.

It so happened Nevpak Bevcan, the packaging giant behind the competitio­n, commission­ed Behrens to create more pieces for the company – and a love for working with recycled materials was born.

“I have grown to love working with recycled materials. It’s fun and creative. It’s very free and I can create without stress or an agenda,” Behrens says.

The company commission­ed the young artist to do portraits of Archbishop Desmond Tutu, former president FW de Klerk and recently Mahatma Gandhi to hang at the their head office.

“Bos Iced Tea just bought a large portrait I did made of iced tea cans of Salvador Dali,” Behren says.

“I really enjoyed working with spent bullet cartridges, recycled sacks and hacksaw blade off-cuts on my rhino piece, which was the main artwork at my exhibition.”

The rhino piece was the cornerston­e of Behrens’ solo exhibit at The Saxon Hotel, Villas and Spa on October 31. The exhibit was an initiative by the artist to raise money to ensure he’d be able to attend the Dave School next year. He was able to walk away with just under R150 000 from pieces sold and additional commission­s received. His rhino piece, sold to SABMiller, was responsibl­e for a third of the takings on the evening. It’ll enable him to jet off to Florida.

“A lot of the film studios recruit directly out of the Dave School, as they have a brilliant name for producing qualified and skilled animators,” Behrens said.

“I am beyond excited about attending this school. They have staff who are not only experience­d in the animation and film world but are still directly employed within it, so cutting-edge technology is being taught in a hands-on environmen­t.

“My dream has always been to work for Disney or Dreamworks and I have a much better chance of fulfilling that dream if I study there. I can also bring the skills home to South Africa and freelance. As an animator you move around the world on different projects.”

 ??  ?? PRETTY PENNY. A portrait (right) of Salvador Dali made from discarded iced tea cans.
PRETTY PENNY. A portrait (right) of Salvador Dali made from discarded iced tea cans.
 ?? Pictures: Supplied ?? BIG NIGHT. From left: Joshua Behrens, his mother Genevieve Black and Ryan Reed in front of his sculpture of a rhino made from discarded cartridges.
Pictures: Supplied BIG NIGHT. From left: Joshua Behrens, his mother Genevieve Black and Ryan Reed in front of his sculpture of a rhino made from discarded cartridges.
 ??  ?? PROMISING. Joshua Behrens is excited his art has made it possible for him to travel to Orlando in Florida next year to study.
PROMISING. Joshua Behrens is excited his art has made it possible for him to travel to Orlando in Florida next year to study.

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