Found objects

"Found object originates from the French objet trouvé, describing art created from undisguised, but often modified, objects or products that are not normally considered art, often because they already have a non-art function. Found objects derive their identity as art from the designation placed upon them by the artist and from the social history that comes with the object. This may be indicated by either its anonymous wear and tear or by its recognizability as a consumer icon. The context into which it is placed is also a highly relevant factor. The idea of dignifying commonplace objects in this way was originally a shocking challenge to the accepted distinction between what was considered art as opposed to not art. Although it may now be accepted in the art world as a viable practice.[...] In this sense the artist gives the audience time and a stage to contemplate an object. Appreciation of found art in this way can prompt philosophical reflection in the observer. However, as an art form, found objects tend to include the artist's output—at the very least an idea about it, i.e. the artist's designation of the object as art—which is nearly always reinforced with a title. 

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Pablo Picasso first publicly utilized the idea [...] Marcel Duchamp is thought to have perfected the concept when he made a series of ready mades, consisting of completely unaltered everyday objects selected by Duchamp and designated as art." 

[källa: Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Found_object]