Jason Rogenes (left) is an artist who discovered his favored raw material while he lived Los Angeles, a commerce-driven, big-box store, strip mall environment where polystyrene was inexpensive, abundant, and easily obtained. To the average consumer, these raw materials have a sole purpose to package and protect what are considered valuable goods in the commerce world and are simply disposable byproducts... but Rogenes saw potential in them.
Jason Rogenes's works are a wonderful example of material transformation art. His works explore spatial intuition and architectural fantasy and display craftsmanship and artistic vision with everyday materials that are familiar to our society; mainly being cardboard, Styrofoam, and various electrical components. He transforms these ordinary and boring packing objects into forms of architectural beauty by stacking, attaching, and placing one inside another. He carves each pre-molded piece by hand before fitting them all together and fastening them with plastic glue. Rogenes repeats this process with anywhere from five to 100 or more individual components, creating pieces that recall space stations, satellites, cities, totems, and modern chandeliers. His use of electrical components to light up the Styrofoam give his works a celestial appearance.
This particular work is named diagram 3.13c. It is installed in the Manuf®actured Museum at 101 California Plaza SF, CA in 2008. It is 216 x 109 x 18 inches. When I look at this work, I feel like an traveller emerging from mountains, onlooking a glorious white city. I believe the mountainous feel comes from the triangular peaks and layers of triangular cardboard. These geometric cardboard shapes sort of frame the styrofoam architecture and act like subconscious arrows, pointing the viewer where to look next. The styrofoam has a regal and unearthly aura that casts many different shadow/contours on the big, bold planes of the cardboard, making the two materials (and the lighting) work together harmoniously.
I really like the way that Rogenes turns an ordinary material with no value into something beautiful and glorious by lighting it strategically. The work shown on the right is named diagram 3.03c and is also an installation in the gallery described for diagram 3.13c (shown above). Once again, the cardboard seems to frame the styrofoam centerpiece and guides the viewers eye, and helps to contain the light. I love the very clean, industrial feel to these works. Below is the centerpiece of the gallery, site-specific installation, 2008; made of EPS foam inserts and electrical components. It reminds me of a space station. I love how he has suspended this massive creation, making it look as thought it were moving through the room yet caught in a still frame. I think he is ingenius to use materials who physical properties are lightweight yet display sturdy bulk and mass. However, I think his use of electrical wire is sloppy. 
I don't like how the orange extension chords hang about. For me, it gives the gallery an unfinished feeling and takes away from the beauty of the forms being displayed. I would've liked to see him hide the extension chords with a goal to make it appear as though the forms are lit up internally from some sort of life force.
Despite my small suggestion, I still believe that Jason Rogenes is brilliant and his works are unique and powerful. A fun thought is that his artwork also saves room in a landfill. Anyway you look at his work, the message is clear that even an "invaluable and disposable byproduct" can be turned into something of beauty that anyone can appreciate.
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