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RECYCLED ARTWORK
The piece, which is made up completely of single use plastic, highlights the impact of plastic on society. Single use plastic has a major enviromental consequence as it takes hundreds of years to biodegrate. As the plastic begins to break down, it seeps into our soil and our oceans, thus impacting the food and resources we need to survive. Plastic can slowly harm us as it continues to seep into our bodies when we eat, drink, and breathe.
1. Michelle Lougee, Magazine Beach Tapestry
In 2022, Michelle Lougee and curator Cecily Miller worked together to create a symbolic art piece to hang in Magazine Beach Park in Cambridge. This piece was largely community based as trash was collected around Cambridge in order to weave together this tapestry of a dove. Many of the townspeople brought in pieces of single use plastic as well as helped to put the final project together. Michelle and Cecily worked together with many different organizations within Cambridge to ensure the piece ecapsulated both community outreach and participation.
Many poeple do not recyle and it is becoming a major problem as an overwhelming amount of waste is filling landfills and oceans. Recycling rates are as low as 6%. In addition, many single use plastics cannot even be recycled. It is crucial that people become aware of future repurcussions should the use of plastic in our communities not change.
2. Tan Zi Xi, Plastic Ocean
Rio de Janiero, 2012
Giget Brubacher is a Brazilian artist who uses art to have an environemntal impact. She uses materials that are often overlooked to provoke thought about the impact of waste on our planet. Thousands of recycled plastic bottles were stacked and arranged to form the shape of the fish. The pieces attracted a lot of attention, especially after being illuminated with light.
In June of 2012, Rio de Janeiro's Botafogo Beach showcased the creation of three fish sculptures crafted from discarded bottles. The piece was created for the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, also called Rio+20. It was meant to draw attention to the environmental impact of plastic pollution in the ocean. The conference's main goal was to address global environmental and sustainability challenges. One of the key outcomes was the agreement on the "Future We Want" declaration, which set sustainability guidelines for the years to come.
A sign accompanying the installation bore the message "recicle suas atitudes," meaning "recycle your attitude," reinforcing the call for environmental responsibility. The sculptures sparked global conversations about waste management and pollution. This piece emphasizes the role of art in inspiring change and promoting sustainable practices on a global scale.
3. Tan Zi Xi, Plastic Ocean
Xi shared that “When we start to study and be conscious of our waste, it will hit home just how unsustainable our culture of convenience is. This revelation is life-changing.” The process of creating this exhibit in the Singapore Art Museum ended up becoming painful as the issues that we are facing with the environment become tangible and directly accessible to the average person.
Artist Tan Zi Xi created "Plastic Ocean" as an immersive art experience for viewers. Meant to resemble the Pacific Garbage Patch, people are able to see the effects of pollution from a different perspective. This piece was made up of over 20,000 pieces of plastic which she gathered from recycling and beach clean-ups. She states, “Through my art, I hope to increase awareness about the dire situation our oceans are in and also improve more people to evaluate their personal plastic waste generation and disposable habits. Plastics are non-biodegradable and will remain on Earth for a very long time. Plastic Ocean will appeal to the morality of the public and shed light on how the culture of convenience is unsustainable”
Pollution and waste can be to understand, as they often feel distant from our daily lives. The scale trash in the Pacific Garbage Patch is staggering. It is estimated that it will take about 10 years to fully remove it. The factor that makes this piece so unique is the different approach to representing these environmental problems. In many cases, statistics are not enough to drive people to start making a change and they must truly see the consequences of their actions.