In Pop Art at Hawk Salvage, Phoenix-based artist Ritu Raj presents a vivid new body of work that merges Pop Art’s irreverent humor with the tactile sensibility of salvage and reinvention. Shown in the creative heart of Grand Avenue, the exhibition features a series of colorful cutouts and mixed-media constructions that reimagine familiar cultural symbols through abstraction and play.

The works reflect Raj’s ongoing exploration of how contemporary art can bridge nostalgia and modernity. Crafted with precision and wit, his cutouts transform everyday imagery into meditations on consumption, memory, and renewal. Within the raw, industrial atmosphere of Hawk Salvage, the pieces find a fitting resonance—where discarded materials and cultural fragments become sources of unexpected beauty and meaning.

Pop Art at Hawk Salvage continues Raj’s broader inquiry into transformation—an artistic language that evolves from his earlier thread paintings and abstract canvases to this new, exuberant dialogue with culture itself. The exhibition invites viewers to see the familiar anew: not as static icons, but as living symbols continually reshaped by context, imagination, and time.

HawkSalvage is more than an antique store — it’s a destination for discovery. A place where one-of-a-kind treasures from around the world meet the creative energy of local artists. The space hums with life: vintage finds, lush houseplants under eclectic lighting, and music that sets an unforgettable mood.

“My greatest joy comes from people who tell me they’re inspired by the pieces and vignettes they find here,” says Greg Hawk, retired firefighter and founder of HawkSalvage. “Over the past five years, more than 150 artists have shared their work in this space. It’s not just a store — it’s a place that celebrates art, music, and creativity across the valley. People often tell me it’s the one store where they always find something they never knew they needed.”