TUCSON, Ariz. – Who would have thought that a plastic bottle could turn into a beautiful flower? Or that empty milk cartons could create a ladder for a slide? Or that corks could represent people?

Contestants for the Re-Used Materials Becoming Art (R.U.M.B.A.) Competition did.

The event was held at the Tucson Convention Center, 260 S. Church Ave., April 3–5. More than 450 exhibitors were there to offer their products and services. Tucson Clean and Beautiful was among them, giving away mesquite seedlings to people who brought cell phones and ink cartridges to recycle, and displaying “trashy” art on the walls, tables and floors.

The R.U.M.B.A. Competition is held every year, but this was its first year at the SAHBA Home and Patio Show.

“It was fantastic,” said Beki Quintero, recycling coordinator for Tucson Clean and Beautiful. “We had more people see the art, much more, over the three-day period, as opposed to our usual four-hour displays.”
The contest was created in 1991 by Barrie Herr, a self-described “rumbalogist” and a green-designated real estate broker, as a combined outreach to promote recycling.

Arizona Waste Exchange originally funded the competition through state grants, but its funds were cut three years later.

Tucson Clean and Beautiful carried on the event, and Herr, who recently received his “Green Designation,” got involved again this year as a coordinator and judge.

“I felt very much that I needed to recycle myself,” he said.

Judges made their selections April 3. Only entries submitted by students in grades K-12 were eligible for prizes, but the showcase also included work by adult and professional artists.

As visitors passed the exhibit, many stopped to look at “Cycleops,” created by Tucson metal artist Ned Egan of materials such as a weathered, old bicycle seat, crushed CO2 chargers, rusty springs and a burner plate from a stove.

“I love the ‘kitch’ aspect of recycled art,” said Sunny Jo Wheaton, 32, a graphic designer in Tucson who attended the event. “Everything’s so funky and cute.”

Grade	Place	Individual	Group
K - 2	1st	Isaac	Slip Sliding Away
	2nd	Flower	Arizona Map
	3rd		Troop 1977
3 - 5	1st	Spaceship to Mars	Chihuly Inspired "Chandelier"
	2nd	The Wild House	The Haunted State Fair
	3rd	Slip Sliding Away	Caps Off
6 - 8	1st	Sparkoly	The Greening of Our Spirit
	2nd	Kristle	Balloon Art
	3rd	The Random Work Table	Rock Band
9-12	1st		Gazing Ball

View current and past R.U.M.B.A. galleries