While Remix has been used as a means to remix our cultural and material surroundings it has been used extensively as a means of critiquing our environment. The aim of this project is to create a body of work that questions an object “end state” and our current ideas as to what qualifies an end state.

With the proliferation of material objects and their impermanent and impersonal attributes there is little engagement between the object and the user. This detachment encourages a rapid cycle of acquisition, use and disposal with little or no critical thought associated to the objects worth. Re-mix and Mash-ups act as cultural critiques of the mass production/consumption practices and are as much political statements as they are design solutions.

The engagement in conceptual and experimental design enables consumers and users to engage and participate in a more critically aware consumer culture. Re-mix cultures posses the ability to communicate ideas and values beyond the transitory and superficial ones currently available.

The Galiano was inspired by materials native to our west coast home. Galiano’s bio-degradable light shade is made from reclaimed Douglas Fir. The twig, which serves as the light’s pull switch, is a section of a wind-downed Arbutus branch collected from beautiful Galiano Island after one of the unprecedented windstorms of the winter of 2006. With the Galiano series we pay our respects to the simple beauty of the natural resources that surround us on the West Coast, while keeping in mind that we must design to minimise the impact of our work on the environment. The fixture is designed to be disassembled into it’s component parts for re-use and/or recycling at the end of it’s life cycle. Simple disassembly and end of life cycle instructions are permanently attached to the inside of the canopy to encourage proper recycling, composting and re-purposing. Lit with an energy efficient CFL light bulb. Hand rubbed finish of natural walnut oil. Fir shade is 6.5″ x 3.75″ x 12″. Length and shape of twig varies.

SCONCE

This project has the potential to demonstrate cradle to cradle design practices. Made out of paper + cardboard destined for the recycle bin, this wall sconce has no toxic materials added to its construction, and is highly suitable for fluorescent (low heat) light bulbs.

Made of Papier Maché, the {feuillé} wall sconce is intended to change people’s attitudes towards thinking about reusing unwanted or discarded materials in new and innovative ways. By using renewable and sustainable materials in its construction, it also has the potential to be completely recycled after its usefulness has been surpassed.

Products such as this would be easily mass produced using recyclable materials that are collected en-masse on a daily basis in many cities. Building new products in this medium would mean that paper products which usually feed into continually lower grade products would be diverted out of the cycle for a longer period of time.

–Darryl Barton BDes

The ‘Boite’ chair was designed to satisfy the need for short-term furniture solutions, for example students. Designed using cardboard for the internal structure and skin, the material is appropriate for a piece of furniture intended for short-term use. The chair can be manufactured and recycled in a closed loop at the point of manufacture or the point of sale, requiring little transportation and creating minimal waste.

The eco aesthetic of the chair encourages more awareness on the part of the consumer regarding their specific needs, i.e. the durability of the product in relation to the required lifespan of the product, and encourages the sustainable use of materials in transient furnishings.

CNC cut corrugated cardboard, glue
H: 3′-0″ W: 3′-0″ D: 3′-0″

The Lineage table/ process is a commentary on throw-away culture and the worth of products. By using an old piece of furniture in a new way, this piece encourages people to rethink old objects. This concept is intended as a process of manufacture, allowing people to keep old (potentially too large) furniture while undergoing a lifestyle transition from overly spacious interiors to a compact way of living. The process extends to the reclamation and transformation of damaged, unwanted or discarded furniture into more functional, desirable pieces.

Instead of sourcing new material, the Lineage uses primarily post-market or post-consumer furniture, reducing the environmental impact of producing new materials. The process is inclusive to a wide range of products of differing sizes and materials extending the life cycle of unwanted products.

Lineage uses second-hand furniture as raw material, adding value to a locally available resource. The process is scalable to a variety of pieces, requires only light labour, and can be made quickly, thus making the process reproducible in any community. The market for the Lineage ranges from the environmentally-conscious to the style oriented, where the novelty for used products versus the desire to maintain ownership can see eye-to-eye. Ultimately the piece fulfills the need for a new product while reducing the impact of this product on the environment.

It’s known that the glass is a kind of recycling material, even though it needs much energy to reheat, mould, and rebuild it. And the bottle cutting is considered as a kinds of art now and various of goods and bottle cutting tools are on sale. In this situation I’d like to do something on the bottle art^_^.

I’m looking for a unique way to cut the bottles, The cutting method shown on my pictures is that I want to cut the bottles by an angle about 80 degree. Usually the bottle are cut horizontally or very close to horizontal.

Now here is a hard nut to crack that it is particularly impossible to cut the bottle in that way. Or it will cost me big money even it can! And probabely I have to give up this idea. Because take the cost and the energy used for this design under consideration, obviousely, it isn’t very brilliante. I’m just thinking of taking Shoko’s idea to make use of the bottles directely without any cutting, heating or shaping.

Coat Rack

Dimensions: The base will be 22.5″ x 24″ x 5″ and the overall height is 5.5′

Economic: Maximize Efficiency/capture lost energy & Fill a market niche & Fulfill a need.

We are maximizing efficiency by reducing the amount of wood ending up in the landfill by taking it from the manufacturer. The manufacturer then does not have to get the glulam sent off to the landfill for disposal. Winter sports enthusiasts and people wanting a unique coat rack would probably fit into the market niche. Most people do have to hang up their coats.

Environmental: Reuse waste.

We are reusing material that would have ended up in the landfill. As well, we are eliminating the waste from the glulam manufacturer (base) since we’re taking their unwanted material.

Social: Extend the product’s life cycle & Change perceptions of consumable products & waste.

We are extending the product’s (glulam & skis) life cycle. The skis are not waste after they’ve expired their use..instead of skiing on them we are hanging on to them for another purpose. The glulam is too short for the manufacturer to sell so instead we have turned it into our base and thus extended it’s life cycle. In turn we are encouraging others to think about what they throw away and think about whether there could be another use for the discarded product.

Yucca Lamp

Goal: to reduce consumable waste.

“As a designer, the choices I make have the ability to recover and protect the eco-system, and better peoples social well-being through the process of providing a functional beautiful piece of art”.

Demonstrating that designers can be ecologically accountable for the processes they employ, and the products they create, the Yucca Lamp is an alternative to unsustainable production methods and non-biodegradable resin.

Using a yucca root vegetable to create the inner void, raw wood for the mold, and hard candy for the actual structure. The Yucca Lamp is a “cradle-to-cradle” product from beginning to end, as it %100 biodegrade at the end of its lifecycle, and becomes food for the biosphere. (Dissolves in rain to feed plant life).

Julie Witten-Land

Book Cradle to Cradle by McDonough and Braungart

This product is a nap waiting to happen in the form of sushi. Unroll the product and the ‘seaweed’ becomes the sleeping mat, the ‘salmon’ your pillow, and the ‘rice’ is your blanket. Portable and compact- perfect for stowing under the office desk! This design re-uses material extending the product’s life cycle and prompts the consumer to re-think the idea of waste.

Stan is a birdhouse that thinks of the birds and gives them a practical, safe, long lasting and easy to clean home.
The front, back and bottom are made from bamboo ply; a much faster growing raw material than regular trees. The roof is made of recyclable and long-living stainless steel. It comes flat packed in minimal packaging and is easy to assemble. A thin flexible stainless steel piece pulls over the structure to form the roof. Simply lift up one side of the roof when an old nest needs to be cleaned out.

The Buoy chair was originally conceived and designed for a homeless workforce reintroduction woodworking program. As there is an immediate shortage in skilled laborers, the purpose of the design and supplementary teaching program is to empower individuals by introducing them to the basic fundamentals of woodworking. The “Buoy” series creates an educational tool that inspires and instills confidence within the individual. The completion of a chair is something that not only the end user would be proud of but the maker as well.

Being true to creative ideologies of Palette Industries, the “Buoy“, was not only designed to be a beautiful object but also embody the essence of the creator’s narrative past. As each finished chair tells the story of its maker’s struggle and triumph, every joint, every cut, every finished surface is a symbol of growth and their persistence to get back on their feet. The current design teaches the following skill-sets learned skill-set: safety, cut sheets, lap joints, butt joints, mitring, splining, finishing and others. Palette is in the midst of talks with community based social programs to try to get programs launched nationally and internationally.

The prototypes for the “Buoy” series where fabricated out of certified, formaldehyde free, moisture resistant, engineered MDF panel product for its decreased missions comparable to natural wood. This was chosen for it is readily available within the market place and is cost effective. Palette Industries envisions the “Buoy” series to be manufactured out of alternative panel products, for example: bio-composite materials made out of recycled newsprint and sunflower hulls or even reclaimed timber.

The Tall Buoy was designed as an extension of the Buoy chair project. Here established artists using the Tall Buoy as a blank canvas, would collaborate with the individual builder to create a true one of a kind art piece. Ultimately the goal is to have the pieces exhibited to not only create awareness of the workforce reintroduction program but to have the pieces auctioned with proceeds going back to the individual and supporting organizations.

The Buoy bench is an explorative continuation of the series. Using recovered wood, this piece is an exuberant example of design utilizing principles of sustainability.

Dimensions: Tall “Buoy” 50″ (H) x 16″ (W) x 22″ (D)

Small “Buoy“- 32″ (H) x 16″ (W) x 22″ (D)

Long “Buoy” Bench- 32″ (H) x 48″ (W) x 22″ (D)

The Meathead mirror allows one to check themselves daily to ensure they have not indeed become what they have eaten. Playing with the traditional imagery of the west, the mirror asks us to look deeper within to consider the mental, behavioral, and physical implications of what we eat.

The mirror’s manufacturing process considers the environment, as it reclaims 50-year old mirror glass that is waterjet cut into a new and useable form; a wall hung mirror.

Design by: Greg Ball for the Hoodoo Series with Shoko Cesar

In the postindustrial era, huge manufacturing facilities have to make way for the flexible boutique factories. Die cutting is simple and can be done by hand tools. It allows the designer/manufacturer to produce only custom ordered pieces thereby eliminating the need for warehousing and the waste of time and material towards unsold goods. Wool is a renewable resource and is 100% recyclable. As both the cut out and the remnants are used, there is no wastage of material. Currently, the die cutter and the felt supplier are both from Ontario thus reducing the amount of fuel used in transportation and the carbon footprint.

The edges of a piece of web of one die pattern are filled in with die cut pieces of a different color and held in place by machine sewing. As each piece of web is different, the edges are uneven and the result is a unique runner of organic shape.

Design by Lily Yung

In the postindustrial era, huge manufacturing facilities have to make way for the flexible boutique factories. Die cutting is simple and can be done by hand tools. It allows the designer/manufacturer to produce only custom ordered pieces thereby eliminating the need for warehousing and the waste of time and material towards unsold goods. Wool is a renewable resource and is 100% recyclable. As both the cut out and the remnants are used, there is no wastage of material. Currently, the die cutter and the felt supplier are both from Ontario thus reducing the amount of fuel used in transportation and the carbon footprint.

Compact mat of varying sizes. Webs are cut up and sewn at high density onto 100% wool Melton and the resulting mat is named after coral reefs, which it resembles. The compact mat can curl around the back or the seat of a chair or a sofa. It enlivens the furniture and gives the user support and a gentle massage. Several of these can be combined to form a sleeping mat for the unexpected overnight guest.

Design by Lily Yung

Materials: reused steel base lamp with clear plastic egg packaging

North America’s rich and over-indulgent culture generates millions of tons of waste that flow into the landfill every year. Cholesterol lighting helps to block the flow of waste by adding beauty to our devalued waste products. By reusing plastic egg package that is on its way to the landfill, Cholesterol adds aesthetic value to a disposable material and asks the user to reconsider: what materials are disposable, and what materials can be reused for their aesthetic value.

Designed by Shoko Cesar, Greg Ball, and Darryl Barton.

W=1′, L=1′, H=5′

File submission:

All submitted designs and proposals must be original works and exempt of any copyrights and any kind of obligation. For more information, contact us at consumablewaste@theideagroup.ca.

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If not registered, please follow the quick steps below:

1. First, register yourself by clicking here.
   Once you register, an e-mail with your password will be sent to you.
2. Go back to the site, and click to login on the right hand menu.
3. Now you can start posting your work. Your initial post will go through website admin before it’s uploaded to the site.
4. Once your work is posted, site visitors will be able to comment on your work. An email will be sent to you each time a comment is posted.

What to submit?
As an individual or group, you may submit a maximum of three designs. Please note, if you are submitting more than one product, submit each product seperately in a different post.
For each work please supply the following:

1. “The Perfect Product” checklist—you must check at least one box in each section (Social, Environmental and Economic). Use this list as a reference, as this part will not be submitted to the blog. Once you have dowloaded the file and checked off the appropriate boxes, send it by email to consumablewaste@theideagroup.ca. It will be used as part of the exhibit.
2. A brief explanation of how your product relates to each of the checked boxes. This part will have to be included in your post with your images.
3. Up to three files (images or a composition of more images) of your project. Please use only .gif or .jpg files at 72 dpi with a maximum 100 kb for each file [image size max 600 (width) x 700 (height) pixels]. The original high-resolution image(s) will be requested later on.

Registration / Submission deadline: February 29, 2008

Finished entry deadline: May 01, 2008