GOWANUS — One person's trash is another's treasure, and a neighborhood recycling center is looking for someone to prove it.
The Lower East Side Ecology Center is seeking applications for an artist-in-residence to set up shop at its Gowanus e-waste warehouse at 469 President St., near Nevins Street.
The position is unpaid, but artists get a 200-square-foot work space inside the warehouse and free use of any materials brought there for recycling.
In return, the artist is expected to create a product that can be sold at the warehouse and host workshops to teach the public how to reuse discarded electronics.
"We've been collecting electronics for over 13 years now and what we really want to do is to inspire people to think about their trash in a different way,” said LES Ecology Center co-founder and executive director Christine Datz-Romero.
"By having this program, we're showing people that what they throw in the garbage is something you can get creative with. It's another way of educating people about waste."
The LES Ecology Center, which also runs an environmental learning center and compost program, opened its 11,000-square-foot e-waste warehouse in Gowanus in 2012.
The facility accepts donations of old computers, TVs, cameras and other electronic gadgets.
The warehouse contains a store that sells refurbished electronics, all of which are tested to make sure they still work. It also has a prop library where movie and TV production companies can rent equipment such as vintage TV sets or colorful old iMacs.
The artist's residency program started in 2014. Past artists have used the space and materials for video projects and jewelry making. Each residency lasts about four to six months, depending on the artist's proposal.
The deadline to apply is 5 p.m., Friday, Aug. 26. For more information, click here.
The current artist-in-residence, Allen Riley, will host a public workshop this Saturday, where participants will help create a temporary assemblage of video equipment.
