The Green Christmas of Eva

My sister knows of my love for all things green, so she sent me a few photos of an incredible Christmas tree that her good friend, Eva, created with the help of her students.

Eva Márquez is a high-school art teacher in the city of Écija, near my hometown. She proposed to her senior class the creation of a Christmas tree made with a variety of recycled materials. To begin with, they built the frame with long wooden beams

After the frame was ready, they covered it with greenhouse mesh

They gathered a bizzillion plastic bottles, cut them vertically, punched a couple of holes on the top, and threaded them with strong fishing line

The long threads of bottles were attached to the mesh like ruffles on a dress

Once the tree was completely covered in bottles, it was spray-painted in green and splashed in many different colors, in Jackson Pollock-fashion
 

Meanwhile, they decorated the tree topper

This styrofoam head was a dumpster find!

The tree was crowned with the head

Final touches to the masterpiece

 A nice closeup of the bottles

This lady-tree is so cool!  When I was in high-school, we never did anything remotely similar.  I can't even remember what we did in art class, which means it surely was lame and boring

A project like this has tremendous value.  I am sure that before this, many never saw a plastic bottle beyond its function as a carrier of soda or water.  This tree opened the eyes and the minds of a lot of people!

 And here are the proud artists!

My sincere thanks to Eva Márquez for allowing me to share her story, her tree, and her wonderful photos!