As a designer there are many ways to be ethical (or unethical) in daily practice. A growing number of designers are experimenting with waste, using often complex industrial methods to transform garbage and industrial by-products into new materials to be used in products and objects. This has a two-pronged benefit, not only reducing landfill and pollution, but also providing an alternative to mining or producing new materials that might be harmful to the environment.
In Australia, a number of designers have turned to this task over the years. The first names that spring to mind include Brisbane designer Marc Harrison who created the Husque bowls out of macadamia shells and Melbourne designer Simone LeAmon who created the Bowling Arm jewellery out of discarded cricket ball leather off-cuts. In Sydney, Liane Rossler and Sarah K created Supercyclers, working in collaboration with other designers to reuse all sorts of materials, including plastic bags, drinking straws and plastic ocean debris, into functional design pieces. One of the most recent examples from Supercyclers is the Bento Box by Sarah K and Andrew Simpson which is made of ocean plastic bakelite.
Other more recent examples of Australians using recycled materials include Sydney-born, Tasmanian-trained designer and now Jam Factory Associate Matt Pearson of MJP Designed Objects who has designed a pendant light out of fly ash resin composite, a waste material that is generated by coal combustion and is a major by-product of the coal industry.
His Fly Light is made of 50% fly ash in combination with resin, forming a material that allows a strong but thin light shade. For designers like Matt, the process of transforming a waste material into a completely new material is difficult, time consuming and requires patience as well as technical knowledge.
UNSW student Madeleine Dennis experimented with a number of materials before realising a way to use avocado seeds as her waste material, transforming them into an attractive homewares range called Original Seed. “Avocado seeds were something I didn’t expect to get anything from and one day decided to ground the seed,” she explains.
“At first it didn’t work and took many goes to get to where I’m at now. I never put too much pressure on discovery or coming across something new. I just kept going, especially when my results were negative. It took a long time to find resins that did not react with the seed, and that was the most time consuming. But when it did work it was very exciting and from that point it was about refining and seeing how far I could push the materials used. All processes occurred at home, in my garage and even my kitchen.”
Overseas, designers are experimenting with the same sorts of processes. Dutch designer Emilie van Spronsen recently made headlines all over the world for transforming chicken carcasses infected with Avian Flu into a stool with feathers and an urn made from bone ash (read the article here).
Italian designer Sebastiano Tonelli has also found a way to use waste materials, using the qualities of the waste materials in his repurposed objects, in this case from an air duct factory which produces sandwich panels made of polyurethane and aluminum. Tonelli transformed these into a series of food containers called Collezione 25% that uses the material in combination with timber to add a thermal quality to the baskets, plate warmer and wine coolers.
And it’s not just emerging designers, in London, well-known furniture designer Benjamin Hubert has turned his focus to ethically-sourced materials and environmental design. Benjamin is now leading a design studio he calls Layer, creating a range of new furniture, lighting and products with a sustainable edge. Worldbeing is a wearable piece of technology that tracks personal carbon usage with the help of a smart phone.
As well as helping wearers to use less carbon in their everyday lives, the Worldbeing is also made from injection moulded recycled e-waste. “There has never been a better time to use design as a tool to create meaningful conversation around our personal responsibility to make changes to our lifestyles to stop global warming,” says Benjamin Hubert. “We desperately need a platform that helps the world to understand what our personal carbon footprint is and why we should be decreasing it in an accessible manner that has a high level of engagement.”
Another product by Layer is the new Scale modular acoustic screen made from recycled pressed hemp for Woven Image in Australia.
It’s great to see design stars like Benjamin Hubert putting their considerable talents to this kind of ethically-minded design. And these are just some of the examples of designers who are making a positive impact on our environment through design – changing the world one object at a time. If you know of any other designers doing great work with recycled or waste materials, please share in the comments below.