A Great Green Design from Singapore 2021
Green design, also known as eco-design, uses design to include economic, social and ecological sustainability. Green design can be used for the microcosm and macrocosm in the scheme of daily living. Green design uses renewable resources. It reminds people about recycling to save the environment. Green design is sustainable design as it is sustained by materials that can be recycled. It is beneficial to recycle material as it reduces the wastage of new resources.
Steel is a good material to work with green design. It can be recycled without wastage as its volume does not decrease after slight changes to its shape. Steel from strips and scrapes can be recycled to create new structured steel for specific purposes or reshaped to form sculptures. Steel strips are flexible to use because they can be taken in any quantity, bit by bit. A lump of metal is harder to work with as its mass and form is difficult to re-shape.
I took these pictures of sculptures made from recycled material. They were displayed outside the entrance of a prominent trade exhibition hall, called The Singapore Expo, at Changi Road, in Singapore. They are life size sculptures made from steel and other metal wire scrapes. The statues are posed in lively positions to emphasize their relation to life.
The seated sculpture represents a person reaching out. It is strategically placed at the end of a slab of stone seat. The body is seated comfortably because its center of gravity is supported by the seat. This is a green design as it recycled the metals to create something to reconnect with man and the surroundings. It used a metal, which is a somewhat natural product. The process used for creating the sculpture is not a harmful one. It is largely hand made.
When both statues are viewed collectively, they are seen as reaching out to each other. Their microcosm is not self-contained but also serves to remind us that they, the recycled metal composites, need to reach out to humans like us to ensure their own continued existence. Humans should recycle waste that belongs to sustainable technologies. This will conserve the earth’s natural resources. The artist conveys an ironic message with his sculpture. If a metal that is sustainable reaches out for help, then, what unknown depths do the environment need help in to sustain itself.
There is another set of sculptures seated on a bench. This group is placed along Clarke Quay, Singapore. These statues were made from recycled materials. They have the finishing touch in the form of plaster, cement or binding material. This serves to minimize the ravages of time under the open elements. This design was sustainable as it reduced the amount of junk waste lying in the house. The five figures make a lasting impression as humans are naturally attracted to the unusual. They are present to remind people about the huge amount of waste generated. On the reverse side, they wish to inform the responsible people to recycle.
This sculpture is sustainable provided that it is used as it is. If a lot of energy is used to recycle the product, it is not eco-friendly and not sustainable. The landscape architect is usually in charge of the architectural design, site planning and recreational planning. He ensures that the statues on display would blend into their environment. This architect works a large variety of surfaces. To ensure that the statues maintain their form, he has used adhesive plaster to help the components adhere together as a mass. When the sculptures are preserved, there is reduced or no loss in the energy required to maintain them.
Green design can be used for the microcosm and macrocosm in the scheme of daily living. Green design uses renewable resources. It reminds people about recycling to save the environment.
Category: Design
