FLOTSAM

BY FRANKLINTILL

Unafraid to make use of litter and waste, designers are applying inventive and resourceful design strategies to turn discarded materials into something more desirable. 

One man’s trash is another man’s treasure as people spontaneously apply a little bit of imagination and creativity to turn waste into whimsical wonders. Imperfections are celebrated in this scavenger makeshift aesthetic. The growing concern to clean our natural environment of unnecessary manmade waste inspires the invention of ‘scavenging’ tools that collect debris to then give it a new lease of life. The “Sea Chair” concept by Studio Swine and Kieren Jones features a machine that sorts plastic suitable for recycling to be made into sustainable chairs. Elsewhere, RCA graduate Ariane Prin created a micro pencil factory which turned wasted from various college departments into new drawing pencils for the students.

Cheap throwaway packaging is transformed through carefree creative personalisation. Designer Josh Blackwell states 'Ostensibly useless, plastic bags are the second most common form of litter in the world after cigarette butts“. His “Plastic baskets” series re-invents everyday shopping bags by embroidering them with other waste materials.

Chaos can be crafted as seen in Central Saint Martins MA graduate Luke Brookes 2012 collection which assumes the look of flotsam washed up on the shore with trailing netting spattered with paint, fabric rags and knotted bits of twine. Similarly Correll Correll’s delicately hand-made shoes are constructed from rope, thread and leather belts. The chaotic and imperfect finish gives the appearance of shoes haphazardly crafted from discarded off-cuts.  Ernesto Netos’ installation 'crazy hyperculture in the vertigo of the world', engages the viewer’s senses by raking them through a labyrinth of netting strung with parcels or scent and colour as if caught in a fishing line. 

Recycling no longer means worthy tones in earthy naturals. Worn-out neutrals are brought to life with faded primary colours creating a washed out palette as if washed up on the sea and bleached by the sun.

Colour:
PANTONE 7501 U
PANTONE 317 U
PANTONE 101 U
PANTONE 2925 U
PANTONE 1788 U
PANTONE 7529 U
GFSMITH: Nomad Terrain