Upcycling style

By Xie Wenting Source:Global Times Published: 2014-4-7 17:33:01

Central Academy of Fine Arts professors Jiang Li (left) and Xiao Yong with some of their upcycled creations. The trend is popular with supporters of sustainable living, but hasn't been widely embraced in China. Photo: Li Hao/GT

What do you do when you no longer have any use for clothes or household items, but are unwilling to discard them because they still seem practical? The answer is "upcycle," a trend that involves reviving old or used items not quite ready for the scrapheap. Famous upcyclers include pop diva Lady Gaga, who last month wore a frilly outfit made out of coffee filters. But upcycling isn't just for celebrities, with people from all walks of life discovering the benefits of a hobby that makes good sense environmentally and financially.

Bunny Yan, a Chinese-American designer, first tried her hand at upcycling two years ago when she found a large amount of defective medical scrubs cast aside at a Shanghai factory.

Feeling it was a waste and noting the clothes' good quality, she decided to bring some home and turn them into something useful. After a bit of trial and error, she upgraded the scrubs into handbags.

"When I finished the first bag prototype, my initial feeling was, 'Wow, I can't believe that works,'" said Yan.

Unlike recycling which involves breaking down original substances to create something new, upcycling involves using an item for a new purpose. The emphasis is on redesign rather than remaking, and there is no pollution caused during the breaking-down process common in recycling.

But upcycling is still a fringe trend in China, where consumer culture remains driven by the sentiment of buying better, new items to replace those that break or are seemingly no longer of use.

A pair of earrings made of paper.Photo: Courtesy of Bunny Yan 

A handbag designed by Bunny Yan. Photo: Courtesy of Bunny Yan

Trash to treasure

A significant amount of defective objects or clothes never make it off the production lines from factories. But they are still rich in potential in the eyes of designers like Yan.

"I like to work with new, defective products. Defective goods are like treasures," said Yan, who has lived in Shanghai for the past five years.

Yan runs an upcycle design shop in Shanghai called The Squirrelz that sells products from more than 20 designers and brands. Items include wallets made from recycled rice sacks, jewelry made from defective watch parts and desk lamps made from old biscuit tins. Her products range in price from 10 yuan to over 1,000 yuan ($1.60-$161).

Upcycling has received some academic support through the advocacy of Jiang Li, a professor of furniture design at the Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA). Jiang's small studio at the CAFA's Chaoyang district campus is filled with innovative upcycling works, including chairs fashioned from a handcart, tire, shopping trolley and toilet seat.

Jiang's 170 chairs were displayed at the UK pavilion during the 2010 Shanghai World Expo to promote low-carbon living.

"I like to visit yard sales and secondhand markets to find valuable materials in good condition. Inspiration comes to me quickly. Unlike normal designs, there is no reference point [in upcycling]. Every item is unique," said Jiang.

A wheelchair made using tricycle wheels. Photo: Courtesy of Jiang Li

Barriers in development

Despite the eco-friendly design of Jiang's chairs, not everyone at the Shanghai World Expo appreciated them.

"I heard that some officials didn't like the chairs because they thought they were too old, but the curator of the UK pavilion insisted they be used," said Jiang.

Yan noted there is a gap between American and Chinese attitudes toward upcycling.

"In the US, even if people don't like upcycling products they still agree with the concept's value. But in China, many people can't accept creating products from defective things. However, more and more Chinese customers have started to take notice of 'green' products," said Yan, adding most of her customers are aged 35 to 45.

Shanghai-based upcycling startup Somos Design sells eco-friendly handbags, wallets, clutch bags and satchels from recycled tarpaulin fish-food sacks from Vietnam and recycled tarpaulin cement sacks from Thailand. The company's founder Tatiana Gomez described China as still being in its upcycling infancy, saying low domestic demand means it is unlikely the market will take off any time soon.

"China is still a baby in terms of upcycling. If you go overseas, you don't need to explain what [upcycled] bags are about because most people already know what it is.

Upcycling has been around for 20 years in the West, but in China it only has a history of three or four years, so there is still a long way to go," said Gomez, a 29-year-old Colombian.

Upcycling supporters argue it can help solve waste management woes in China, where 80 percent of trash ends up in landfills.

The State Council specified measures to promote recycling of garbage in its 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15), citing shortage of land and secondary pollution from the buried garbage.

But infrastructure shortcomings have limited waste management progress, according to Xiao Yong, a graphic designer and professor at the CAFA who helped design medals presented at the Beijing 2008 Olympics. "Recycling stations have done a poor job in waste classification, and there aren't many transition markets for secondhand goods," said Xiao.  

A seat made from an old baby carrier. Photo: Courtesy of Jiang Li


Winning over the masses

Upcycling was common in China in the past, only people didn't know it by that name. Xiao noted that in times of limited resources it was common - and still is in many rural areas - for people to collect leftover cloth from dozens of families to make clothes and linen.

"But now few people keep alive this tradition. In any case, few designers in China like upcycling because of its low market value," said Xiao.

Yan attributes the obscurity of upcycling to its status as being the "culture of small crowds, not the mass market," but warned any push in the direction of large-scale commercial production would be misguided.

"The purpose of upcycling is to make use of defective or discarded items. If a mass production model emerges for upcycling, it in turn will produce defective products and the meaning of upcycling will no longer exist," said Yan.

A table made from a pair of tricycle wheels. Photo: Courtesy of Jiang Li

Competition heats up

In December 2012, the Showing Your Recycled Artworks upcycling competition was organized by the Beijing Municipal Party Committee. The activity was the first of its kind in Beijing, drawing more than 1,000 entries nationwide from people who sent photos of their creations.

Awards were given to 90 entries based on their innovation, practicality and presentation.

Among lauded works was a money box made of paper, tote bags made of denim and an ashtray made from an aluminum soda can.

Winning works were later being displayed on the Beijing Municipal Party Committee's website.

Tian Wensong, a committee representative, said that the purpose of the competition was to inspire the public to make the switch to sustainable living.

"Waste is only trash when it is discarded and forgotten about. When we consider its other purposes, it can be a useful resource," Tian said.

"Designers need to have keen sense of how to convert 'old garbage' into something that is appealing in consumers' eyes to maximize its social values," said Dong Jinshi, secretary-general of the International Food Packaging Association, who participated in the 2012 Showing Your Recycled Artworks competition. 

Xiao's first experience with upcycling was in the early 1990s while he was a university student in Finland. Deterred by the high cost of envelopes, he used sheets of newspaper and painted paper to make envelopes.

The postal company was impressed enough with Xiao's makeshift stamped envelopes, which were successfully delivered to China.

"Upcycling requires good hands-on skills. Most Chinese aren't good in this regard, so it's difficult to promote the concept to the masses," said Xiao, who believes primary and middle school students must receive more in-depth handicraft and environmental education for upcycling to grow in China.

Lin Youzhu from environmental organization Friends of Nature said the public must pay greater attention to the fate of discarded goods for the well-being of the environment, but noted upcycling isn't necessarily always the best course of action.

"Upcycling falls between reusing and recycling. We need to consider how we use goods after they reach the end of their life based on practical considerations. If too much effort and resources are needed in the upcycling process, it should be avoided," said Lin.




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