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So Plastic (or So Plast!c) is a series of products made from recycled or upcycled plastic waste designed by Singaporean designer, Karyn Lim.
It was inspired by plastic - the ubiquitous and highly versatile material that was once celebrated as “the material of a thousand uses” when it was first invented in the early 1900s, associated with styles that were cheap, flimsy or fake in the 60s, and today, viewed as a major pollutant and threat to our environment.
So Plastic harnesses the potential of plastic waste to exist as permanent pieces of design art for homes and commercial spaces instead of being discarded into landfills.
Recyclable plastic materials are painstakingly sorted, cleaned and processed into raw material for the creation of Karyn’s tables.
Recyclable plastic materials are painstakingly sorted, cleaned and processed into raw material for the creation of Karyn’s tables.
Recycled plastic tables
So Plastic small tables are made from recycled plastic waste. Recyclable plastics from food and drink packaging are collected, sorted, cleaned, and processed into useable raw material for the production of eco-polymer sheets that can be used to make new products.
Can you tell from the look of this table that it was made with 6kg of waste?
Can you tell from the look of this table that it was made with 6kg of waste?
Made from 6kg of waste
Each table is made from approximately 6kg of waste, which is 2,000 bottle caps! The small tables are designed with circularity and eco-consciousness in mind.
Plastic Recycling
The beauty of plastic is that it can be re-recycled as long as it has not been polluted with other materials. Each table has the potential to be recycled again at the end of its lifespan as a table. Although I highly discourage it – the process of recycling consumes energy as well.
Flat packed tables
These tables are also designed with the ability to be flat-packed so they occupy minimum space during transportation.
Neoplastic Principles
So Plast!c small tables pay homage to neoplastic principles of geometry, asymmetry, and the use of positive and negative elements. The compositions feature horizontal and vertical lines positioned in layers or planes that do not intersect; a characteristic typical to the movement.
HDPE and PP Plastic
So Plast!c tables are made using HDPE (high-density polyethylene) from bottle caps and PP (polypropylene) from food and drink packaging.
Plastic Bags Recycled Products
So Plastic vessels are hand-woven from used plastic grocery bags. They are created using a craft-driven approach.
The recycled materials create interesting colours and textures in this coffee table, thanks to their former uses.
The recycled materials create interesting colours and textures, thanks to their former uses.
Each recycled furniture is unique.
They might carry marks of color from commercial branding that was printed on them, and are often composed from bags from more than one store. Raw, organic movements of plain contrasts against the regular, grid-like patterns in a tension between transience and permanence.
How long does it take for 1 plastic to decompose?
According to journalist Tim Donnelly, in his book The Outline, “The average use lifespan of a plastic bag is all of about 12 minutes. Then that bag essentially exists forever: it can take 500 to 1,000 years to break down.”
This series ponders on perception and behavior.
Should these vessels be considered disposable since they were made from disposable bags that were given out for free? Or are they precious since they have been manually made by a human hand into a sculpture, a supposed object of value?
Some stores have started charging an extra few cents for a plastic bag to discourage the excessive use of it. It made me wonder why education about the urgency of reducing waste could not change user behavior, but adding a perceivable value on the product could.
Salone Satellite, Milan Design Week 2023
I launched these pieces at SaloneSatellite during Milan Design Week 2023, then in Singapore at Designers & Crafters Edition 01 co-curated by Industry+ and Sol Luminaire at Galerie 5.
At both events, my heart was warmed by the surprise that people have when they realize that all of the pieces were made from the infamous pollutant – plastic packaging waste. I think that, in some way, these products have changed their perception of the potential of plastic waste, and its possibility to exist as a permanent, perhaps statement, piece in their space. - Karyn Lim