A found object is something that was created for a purpose other than art but is now used in the creation of art. Found objects are frequently used in sculpture, but they can also be found in music, performance, and other forms of art. These objects can become the focal point of a piece or simply be integrated into it, and they can be of any size or shape, as anything in the world has the potential to become a found object.
Many found objects are made to serve a practical purpose. A lawnmower, for example, could be used whole or in dismantled form in a sculpture or performance piece. The piece could reference the lawnmower’s original function, or it could completely repurpose the lawnmower, sometimes in an unrecognizable way, depending on the artist’s goal. The same lawnmower doesn’t have to appear in a visual work; it can also appear in music, complete with its own distinct sound.
These objects are particularly common in industrial music, though they can also be found in other genres. Some classical musicians, for example, enjoy incorporating birdsong into their performances and using it as a foundation for new melodies and themes. In ethnic music, pots and pans are used as drums, and in the dance and music performance Stomp, objects ranging from mops to saws are used as musical instruments. In music, a found object can be subtle or jarring, melodious or cacophonous, but it will almost always pique the listener’s interest.
These objects may be used in modern sculpture, sometimes to an extent that critics find excessive. If you have access to a modern art museum and spend a day wandering around, you will almost certainly come across a number of found object pieces, ranging from pianos splashed with paint to garbage piles. Because a found object is always discovered rather than created, an artist may have no idea what it is or how to use it until he or she comes across it.
Despite the fact that some objects are extremely expensive, some cynics point out that one of the primary advantages of a found object is that it is often cheap or free. Fans of this style of art argue that using found objects in art demonstrates the ability to find beauty in the mundane, and that including a found object in an art piece often leads to people thinking about that object, and sometimes the world, in entirely new ways.