'The New Normal' Exhibition by ECO-oh! at Dutch Design Week
25-10-2017
During Dutch Design Week, from Saturday 21 October to Sunday 29 October, ECO-oh! will be presenting ‘The New Normal: Let’s recycle for life’ at the Ketelhuisplein. ECO-oh! is collaborating with four Dutch designers: Basten Leijh, LINT landscape architecture, Simone Post and Studio Thier&vanDaalen. Now they are ready to collectively present their work.
Welcome to the world of household plastics recycling. Wherever you look, you’ll find articles of plastic packaging. They form a monumental mountain of waste that is putting our planet’s ecosystem under pressure. Taking an acceptance of this reality as our starting point, we at ECO-oh! are working every day to improve solutions for recycling yoghurt pots, butter dishes and other small plastic items. As such, we find it extremely important to offer an alternative to incineration and to make people aware that mixed plastics can also be used as raw materials.
The New Normal
The exhibition 'The New Normal' gives insight into innovative technologies in order to demonstrate the endless possibilities of our materials.
While Simone Post emphasizes the beauty of plastics with her inspirational book, Basten Leijh indicates that the act of carefully selecting colours has a major impact on how the quality of a product is perceived. “Like colour compositions in pointillist paintings, the variation of colour combinations will result in attractive products in the future," Simone Post agrees. Landscape architects of LINT demonstrate exactly how much plastic waste societies produce with an impressive panorama, whereas Studio Thier &vanDaalen have applied a vast array of techniques to investigate the possibilities as well as the limitations of the material, focussing specifically on the flexibility thereof.
All of this comes together in a highly ambitious project that can be seen as a commentary on modern day consumption.
Credits Photo: Basten Leijh
Giving waste materials a second life
Conjuring the mountain of plastic waste into new raw materials is our mission, which begins with waste sorting at home. It’s heart-warming to see the enthusiasm that citizens bring to this task. Their efforts enable us to recycle 97% of these plastics into sustainable products that benefit nature, too. When the Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis recently suggested reducing the collection of plastics, it felt as if they were turning back the clock.
If a circular economy is truly a top priority, waste incineration can no longer be an option. So it’s high time to take a new look at the beauty of recycled plastics. The exhibition ‘The New Normal: Let’s recycle for life’
showcases the startling possibilities of recycled plastics. ECO-oh! has commissioned four designers to work with this raw material without limitations. The designs and material studies are inspirational and the beauty of their results is attracting a lot of interest. Experience for yourself how a yoghurt pot can be transformed into a bench and be amazed by boundless possibilities. Together we create ‘The New Normal’ in which recycling household plastics becomes just as natural and logical as recycling paper and glass.
Credits Photo: Simone Post & Mathijs Labadie