MEET: Rigamaroll Art
Artists make landscapes, cityscapes and seascapes. But Ardis Karr-Robak makes magscapes, the term she coined for the works she creates from magazine pages.
Last year, Ardis launched Rigamaroll Art, a name that embodies the elaborate procedure of rolling scraps of magazines into art. A born multifaceted artist, as well as an avowed recycler, Ardis created Rigmaroll to simultaneously unleash her creativity and help Mother Earth by breathing a second life into otherwise unwanted items.
Rigamaroll Art is the latest in a long series of creative pursuits for the Rockledge artist who has been entranced by the arts since she started walking back in her hometown of Houston, Texas. The visual and performing arts have been a passion from preschool to college in Chicago, where she graduated magna cum laude from Northeastern Illinois University.
The globetrotting artist has performed with chamber groups and rock bands, painted murals, refinished furniture, worked in a commercial photo studio, taught piano, wrote a novel, designed award-winning floats for the Portland Rose Festival in Oregon and recorded textbooks for The Piano Technician School for the Blind in Virginia. She is versatile in a variety of mediums, from oils, acrylics and pastels, to beads, colored pencil, glass and floral decoration.
That’s not all for the versatile Ardis, who has also served as inclusion mentor for individuals with disabilities, an activity director in a senior community, an organizer for lifestyle groups, a certified Baby Signs instructor, certified master composter/recycler and a host for Japanese college students.
Rigamaroll Art developed from a project to extend the life of magazines by donating current issues and activity books that were slated to be tossed to a spate of local senior and youth groups. Ardis wanted to go a step further and engage her creativity, too.
A year of experimenting with magscapes resulted in a distinctive art form.
“I wanted to use magazines that were going to be thrown away, but I didn’t want to use collage, and I didn't want to run into trademark issues by using whole images, so I had to come up with something different,” she explained.
In a lightbulb moment, she developed the style of tightly rolling magazine pieces that are then affixed to a background that could be made from old cabinet doors, tin, scrap wood and further enhanced by bits of tile, craft paper and even bottle caps. Whatever Ardis may find scouring is fair game, but unwanted cabinet doors are a staple in the works.
“I have an arrangement with local cabinetmakers for doors that have been replaced or are imperfect, and I am always looking for materials,” she said. “Whatever I find determines what it will be at the end.”
Her upcycled magscapes are a labor of love that requires significant labor.
“Every piece takes hours,” she said. “It’s multi-step.”
Collectors can access selected pieces at Carolyn Seiler and Friends Artist’s Co-op, 318 Delannoy Ave., Cocoa Village, as well as local art festivals. Her work is on display through Nov. 25 at Viera’s Government Complex, Building B, as part of Brevard Cultural Alliance’s Art in Public Places program.
Custom work is welcome, since everything is created one at a time, no two are exactly alike. With a variety of sizes and prices, starting at $24 for a 6" square, Rigamaroll Art is accessible to collect.
Cynthia Barney spotted a Rigamaroll Art piece in her coworker’s office and was smitten.
“I had to have one,” said the Merritt Island resident, who contacted Karr-Robak to ask if she could create a custom piece that would incorporate a picture of her daughter’s dog and do so in time for her daughter’s birthday.
“I was so impressed that I then ordered my husband a New York Jets piece for our anniversary. These pieces are one-of-a-kind and Rigamaroll Art takes the time and uses very specific colors to make the art come alive. I will keep going back to order.”
Connect
Learn more about Rigamaroll Art on Facebook: /rigamarollart
Go Get Some Rigamaroll Art!
Ardis Karr-Robak will display her works at the following events:
- Oct 7: Field Manor Seafood Festival, Merritt Island
- Nov 3: Friday Fest, Cape Canaveral
- Nov 18: Hoot in the Park, Wickham Park, Melbourne
- Dec 15-16: Holiday Market and Snowfest, Melbourne Auditorium
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