点废成绿 Greening the Beige (GtB) is an eco-minded arts collective and not-for-profit community network dedicated to nurturing awareness of environmental issues. 点废成绿 GtB promotes and celebrates earth friendly artists and organizations in Beijing.
"Why are we being forced to choose between the economy and the environment? We tend to forget that without an environment we would not have an economy, as everything we consume and I mean everything comes from our environment."
~ Franke James (contemporary artist, photographer, writer)
Beijing's landfills are getting full fast! Reduce the "trash" you throw away by purchasing products with minimal packaging. Look for reusable, recyclable, and biodegrable items and remember to carry your reusable shopping bags!
As the upcoming 5th annual Greening the Beige event series continues to inspire through the old adage of "one person's trash is another person's art project", we'd like to spotlight a few artists that are blowing us away with their creative works.
Let's start with Bottle Caps, revealing the 8' x 7' self- portrait made entirely of unrecyclable bottle caps, by Mary Ellen Croteau. Prior to working with Bottle Caps, Croteau also developed a series called Bag World, where she constructed mixed-media installations, sculptures, and recreated famous landscapes by way of hundreds upon hundreds of disposable plastics.
Hot off the net, just yesterday Treehugger.com featured Keri Rosebraugh's gargoyle drawing (pictured above), derived from found objects and "repurposed trash", also demonstrating the truly transformative powers of art.
It really makes you wonder: just how crucial could the role of artists play in solving Beijing's overflowing landfill problem?
