Around the World in 80 Chairs: Mosaic Bench, Tata Beach – New Zealand

Mosaic Bench on Tata Beach near the Abel Tasman National Park, Golden Bay northern New Zealand.

Supercyclers – Sustainability and Aesthetics

Supercyclers are an ever-growing international collection of designers focused on building a sustainable future into the products they create, transforming perceptions of waste materials and the way we use things in the process.

Supercyclers at No.19 Greek Street

We met Sarah K, one of the supercyclers, at No. 19 Greek Street during the 2012 London Design Festival and she showed us around the top floor of the building.

Unexpended Polystyrene Box | Mark Vaarwerk © Supercyclers | Courtesy of 19 Greek Street

Sarah told us that the aim of the collective is to create beautiful objects while remaining as sustainable as possible, without letting this affect the quality or the aesthetic of their creations i.e. “recycling materials without looking like recycling“.

Framed NewspaperWood | Vij5 + Breg Hanssen © Supercyclers | Courtesy of 19 Greek Street

The cabinet made from ‘NewspaperWood’ by supercyclers Vij5 and Breg Hanssen was particularly remarkable as it resembled both the look and feel of wood and is a perfectly functional recycled building material. Supercyclers encourages the collaboration of different designers, revolving around the idea of taking an object and transforming it into something new. Artists will use materials in a certain way while sticking to a sustainable theme.

Quilt Light | Tamara Maynes | © Supercyclers Courtesy of 19 Greek Street. The template is downloadable here and the lampshade is folded and pieced together according to the instructions.

The wide theme allows for a lot of experimentation and both traditional and modern ideas are encouraged. Designs such as the juice maker encourage a more sustainable lifestyle in going back to basics, while other new/contemporary ideas may lead towards a more futuristic approach.

Stir It | Postfossil | © Supercyclers Courtesy of 19 Greek Street

Sarah along with Lianne Rossler came up with a unique way of reusing plastic disposable straws. The concept is ideal for a long dinner table. The straws are filled with water, which doesn’t leak out due it is long and narrow structure and thin stems can be placed inside acting as a horizontal vase. The simple design is easy to recreate and were featured in Green Magazine Australia as a great way to reuse materials that would normally end up in the bin. In the United States alone 500 million plastic straws are thrown away daily and are not recycled.

Yours to Care For | Sarah K + Liane Rossler | © Supercyclers Courtesy of 19 Greek Street

Sarah and Lianne were also inspired by the idea of foraging while searching for plants to place into their individual vases, when they both realised they were now looking at the foliage in their neighbourhood differently. By making holes in the straw they were also able to combine different leaves with one another creating hybrid plants.

Plastic Fantastic | Sarah K + Liane Rossler | © Supercyclers Courtesy of 19 Greek Street

The projects developed by supercyclers are intended to inspire and encourage creative processes among the public and in the design world. The ideas presented by the supercyclers are both things you could make at home or objects that are aimed to provoke design and development in a certain area rather than being intended for practical use – such as the Plastic Fantastic series. Many projects carry a philosophy or a specific method behind the work but all of them are united by the common theme.

Kite Stool | Blakebrough + King | ©Supercyclers
Courtesy of 19 Greek Street

Restore Your Childhood: Recycled Toy Sculptures

If you were wondering what to do with all your old toys why not use them to create art. This is what Robert Bradford did when he came across a box of his children’s old toys. Rather than discarding the collection of tiny plastic figures he used them to assemble colourful sculptures.

Terrier toy sculpture

These have since been exhibited in numerous cities all around the world.

Rhino toy sculpture

Most of his sculptures are of dogs, but he has also sculpted rhinos, ostriches, camels and fairies.

Sniff toy dog sculpture

Bradford has shown the wide range of different styles available when using recycled materials.

Ostrich toy sculpture

Recycling can be the source of inspiration as well as comprising the materials for the art work.

Dachshund toy sculpture

Around the World in 80 Chairs: Colourful Hemp Chairs, London

Hemp Chairs by © Studio Aisslinger in Soho, London. Courtesy of 19 Greek Street.

Studio Aisslinger is based in Berlin and was founded by the German designer Werner Aisslinger. His works cover the spectrum of experimental, artistic approaches, including industrial design and architecture.

He seeks to use the latest technology in creating his designs and has helped introduce new materials and techniques to the world of product design. The stackable monobloc hemp chairs are made from hemp and kenaf, which are both renewable materials and have been designed for a lightweight eco friendly manufacturing process.

 

Around the World in 80 Chairs: Tyre Chair by René Olivier, London

Tyre Chair by René Olivier at Design Junction for the London Design Festival 2012.

Around the World in 80 Chairs: Roccapina V Chair, London

Roccapina V Chair by Yard Sale Project made from colour graded hardwoods. Photo courtesy of YardSaleProject.

The unique block design is put together piece by piece, held together by glue and reinforced by screws. The chairs are made with absolute precision, starting off as smooth distinct shapes and moving into a pixelated jagged edge. Despite its chaotic appearance, there is a lot of order in the making of the chair each block adjoining to another is of a different colour. The designer Ian Spencer stated that “There are actually a lot of rules to the chair, but an absence of predictability. It’s not anarchy.” The YardSaleProject exhibited at London’s Designersblock at the Southbank Centre last weekend.

Roccapina V Chair back view. Photo courtesy of the YardSaleProject.