University of Washington

 ― 

Waste of Space

WasteOfSpace_01
Explorations of materials and making, to communicate waste data.
Project
Waste of Space
Location
Seattle, Washington
Year
2020
Categories
Exhibition

Teams of design seniors in Kristine Matthews’ Exhibition & Installation Design class were challenged to research a statistic on waste and then express and explain that statistic through a unique material installation. 

Ariel Chan, Calvin Kordel and Pan Li investigated receipt waste: Not only are 93% of receipts non-recyclable, they are also typically coated with BPA/BPS, an industrial chemical associated with a range of health risks. 

Raziah Ahmad, Solji Lee and Sarah Sivjee explored the explosion in cardboard consumption caused by the rise of e-commerce. Though cardboard may seem eco-friendly, two-thirds of North American container board is made from virgin, not recycled, pulp. This translates to 1 billion trees chopped down every year to form 165 billion individual packages. 

Casey Jacobson, Patricia Lee and Eliza Townsend highlighted the pollution associated with synthetic fibers: Every load of laundry releases million of fibers of micro plastic, 40% of which end up in our local bodies of water. 

Alyssa Collister, Maya Flood and Koko Morrill revealed that the average wedding produces 63 tons of carbon dioxide (equivalent to the amount that four to five people produce over an entire year). The team transformed a used wedding dress into a statistic-laden experience, complete with a long train of trash.

Anna Hagadorn, Kevin Oh and Camille Vance brought to life the trillions of microfibers contaminating marine life, released from the polyester clothing in our laundry. A scene of marine creatures crafted from clothing is animated with projections of microscopic fibers, ocean currents and the churn of a washing machine.

WasteOfSpace_02 WasteOfSpace_03
WasteOfSpace_04
WasteOfSpace_05 WasteOfSpace_06
WasteOfSpace_07
WasteOfSpace_08 WasteOfSpace_09
WasteOfSpace_10
WasteOfSpace_11 WasteOfSpace_12
WasteOfSpace_13
WasteOfSpace_14 WasteOfSpace_15