- Students From The Royal College Of Art, Briefed By PriestmanGoode Creates New Materials From Single-Use Plastics
- The online exhibition showcased the work of 11 Textiles students who created new materials from single-use plastics.
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- PriestmanGoode
PriestmanGoode collaborates every year with the Royal College of Art, London bridging the practice of design and education. This year, the online exhibition featured the works by 11 students, who were briefed by PriestmanGoode to create new materials from single-use plastic. This exhibition is part of the official program of the London Design Festival 2021. The brief challenged the students to develop ways to reuse, rethink and redefine this waste resource to find creative solutions while considering the energy consumption and resources required to do so.
“The students tackled the brief in the most difficult times with great enthusiasm and passion, addressing one of the biggest challenges of our time and creating beautifully handcrafted solutions,” says Maria Kafel-Bentkowska, Head of Colour, Material, and Finish (CMF) at PriestmanGoode. “We loved the transformation of polystyrene into new surfaces with extended properties and the clever addition of natural color pigments and image transfers in Bethany Voak’s work. Henrietta Dent’s unraveling of fruit nets provided a beautiful solution to re-weaving a mono-material that then can still be recycled and Yuke Liu’s playful approach in creating tools to educate children provided a great transformation into reuse and education. We found that they all provided very different solutions to the same problem but all very well-grounded.”
The students explored the material textures, surface finishes, and also its applications. The winning project by Bethany Voak reimagines the lifespan and potential uses of expanded polystyrene. Voak’s research found that while polystyrene is 100% recyclable, it is often not recycled in the UK.
Limiting the environmental impact of the processing, Voak found an organic compound that causes polystyrene to change into a moldable consistency, which results in a hard material that can be smoothened or textured as desired. The material can also be colored and given different patterns, making it useful for several applications, particularly in leisure and hospitality environments.
Another highly commended project saw the innovative usage of Polypropylene and Polyethylene nets, found in supermarket waste streams. Student Henrietta Dent worked with these strong, lightweight materials, plying, weaving, and heat setting to create mottled effects in subtle color palettes. This also adds strength and longevity to the materials. The resulting product allows colors and light to diffuse, and can also be recycled.
Yuke Liu has designed a set of painting tools made out of recycled single-use EPE fruit net foam. Liu’s project focuses on the interaction between users, products, and the environment. The recycled single-use plastics can be used as tools to leave marks and to build relationships between customers and designs.
The exhibition saw many other innovative projects where used plastic is transformed into materials and products that have practical applications.
Read more about the exhibition and projects here.
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