Derek Weidner?s version of the Canterbury Cathedral includes Campbell?s Soup towers, SPAM buttresses and a sardine-can roof.
“I think I got pretty close, with the sizing and detail. But it?s hard to find a tan can,” said Weidner, a student at Anne Arundel Community College, who has visited the actual cathedral in England.
He was one of about 20 architecture students from the college who participated in the Canstruction charity event at Marley Station Mall Friday.
Design firms and students across the nation built sculptures out of canned food, each within a 10-by 10 space. The event took place in 45 cities across North America, according to the Canstruction Web site.
The only other materials allowed were tape, cardboard, rubberbands, wire and .25 inch leveling platforms.
The students had to design their project using computer software, and plan and order the building materials they would need, said college architecture professor Robert Lowe.
After the students? sculptures are displayed at the mall, their building blocks will be donated to the hungry and their work will be photographed and entered into a national competition. Last year?s winner was a can of mustard, a bottle of ketchup and a hot dog, entitled “An American Classic.”
The 30,000 cans that were used to build everything from a hulking igloo to the “Lin-can Memorial” were provided by Food Link, Inc.
The project was a learning experience in giving and design, Lowe said. “They were problem-solving and thinking about real-life issues.”
“They also were serving the community by donating the food. A lot of times college students aren?t thinking about that kind of thing,” Lowe said.
