Flotsam and Jetsam 2025: One person’s trash is another person’s treasure in annual Abrolhos Island hunt

Hundreds of people gathered at Fisherman’s Wharf early on Monday morning, hoping to grab the perfect treasure out of piles of trash. The mountains of plastic, rope, wood and anything else you can imagine will be repurposed into incredible works of art for the 2025 Flotsam and Jetsam art exhibition and competition by Latitude Jewellers. Since the launch of Flotsam and Jetsam in 2011 more than 80 tonnes of rubbish from the Abrolhos Islands — home to Latitude Jewellers pearl farm — has been removed. The event was pioneered by Latitude Jewellers owner Pia Boschetti. The event coincides with Clean Up Australia Day, the first Sunday in March. This year, 33 of the Flotsam and Jetsam team headed out to the islands to collect as much rubbish as they could over the weekend. Following the clean-up, the rubbish is laid out on Fisherman’s Wharf for people who come from near and far to select the materials that inspire them. This year’s theme is Welcome to the Circus, inviting artists to “explore the magic and mystery of circus life” and “let your imagination soar with the greatest showman-style spectacle, from dazzling sideshows to swirling fairy floss and popcorn”. With more than 100 entries in 2024, artists of all ages and skill levels have until May 14 to complete their masterpiece, with winners announced and awards presented on opening night on May 24. The artworks will be displayed at Latitude Jewellers from May 24 to June 13 and most are available to purchase with prices ranging from $20 to $3000. When speaking with 7NEWS, Ms Boschetti said the best thing about the event was keeping the islands clean and seeing the incredible art the public create with a bit of rubbish. “What’s great is that people from the community want to take this away and bring it back in a form of artwork,” she said. “It teaches kids to look after the area. “The purpose is we want people to pick up any form of rubbish from anywhere around our coastline, turn it into a form of art and leave it out of landfill.”