There are a thousand and more reasons to rid ourselves of plastic – our health, the environment, the cost in resources – and that’s just a start. In the U.S. less than 25% of plastic bottles are ever recycled, the rest ending up in landfills. But we know artists who are working with our throwaway plastic bottles and creating public works of art. While we wish there were no plastic bottles (or at least every one recycled), here are five examples of our plastic trash turned into public art:
Have you found any ‘plastic bottle art’ that you’d like to share?
What a week! This past Sunday through Tuesday, we made our first public debut with our reusable glass water bottles at the 2011 International Home + Housewares Show. It was an exciting time as so many people came to see our bottle and hear its two stories.
The Art Story
BottlesUp reusable glass water bottles were designed by nationally-acclaimed architectural glass artist Laurel Herter. More than 2 years ago, realizing the problems of plastic to our health and the environment, Laurel realized she had a solution right there in her studio – design a reusable glass water bottle. The glass water bottle is designed for the modern hand with a slight curviture and rings to be an easy, natural fit. Also, it has a rounded lip, like old-fashioned milk bottles, making it easy to drink from. But the art story continues, the bottles are made using ancient glass techniques in a modern facility. Unlike manufactured bottles, our bottles have the natural beauty of glass, made from one piece of glass, and placed in molds. The glass is finished with a ‘puff of air’ (this process is called semi-automatic) to ensure we get a consistent interior diameter so we can get a water-tight seal with the silicone cap.
The Green Story
BottlesUp glass water bottles have the lowest carbon footprint in the industry. The enrite product and our packaging is 100% sourced in North America. The glass in the reusable water bottles is made from a minimum of 75% post-consumer recycled glass, that is sourced on site in Pavisa, Mexico. (No slow boat from China for us or for you!) Glass is naturally BPA-free and PVC-free. The colorful food-grade silicone grippers and cap are made in Maine. We use minimal packaging that makes the most of recycled materials. You’ll find zero plastic in the product or the packaging – zero, zilch, nada.
We hope it’s the first of many times we get to tell our story.
For Valentine’s Day, I’m sharing the love – take a sneak peak at our glass water bottles that we’re set to debut this March. You can see the beauty of the glass – the result of its design and of how it’s made. It’s a beautiful process, have you seen it?
It seems there is no shortage of creative minds trying to help us better visualize the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. This great visual is from Metrobest, courtesy of Flickr.
