文件夾胡桃夾子

Where other people see trash or non-art, four artists see art – or at least the raw materials for art. This winter, Hong Kong Youth Arts Foundation (HKYAF) works with Citibank Plaza to present the Citibank Plaza Recycled Nutcracker Project (until 2 Jan 2014). Artists Kevin Cheung, Hanison Lau, Karen Pow and Chao Harn Kae use discarded materials collected from local waste and recycling centres, used stationery from Citibank Plaza’s offices, plus found objects including ceramic ware and birdcages to create four larger-than-life nutcrackers. Standing seven-feet tall in the award-winning Citibank Plaza’s lobby, these traditional guardians of Christmas help to celebrate the festive season, but more importantly, they serve as a reminder to be less wasteful this giving season.

眾人眼中的舊物或原材料，卻是藝術家眼中的藝術品，至少是藝術創作的原點。今個冬天，香港青年藝術協會邀請四位本地藝術家鮑卓微、曹涵凱、張瑋晉及劉學成，運用本地回收中心的舊物、花旗銀行廣場所收集的舊文具用品、隨手可取的物品如鳥籠和陶瓷餐具，創作四座突破傳統造型的胡桃夾子雕塑。七呎高的巨型雕塑展放在中環花旗銀行廣場高層大堂，跟市民一同慶祝聖誕之餘，更希望向公眾推廣減少浪費的環保訊息。

We speak to Kevin Cheung, creator of The Ring Binder Nutcracker.
 

I am…

An upcycling artist. Since 2010, I have worked with many different Hong Kong organizations to research and experiment different new ways of turning waste into upcycled products.

The Ring Binder Nutcracker
The original idea was to use office waste to create art. And it just so happens that I had retrieved boxes of discarded used ring binders. Ring binders signify workload – something that most people want to avoid. But what if we changed what ring binders could mean – wouldn’t everyone be surprised to see how they can be used for art as they rush past the nutcracker after work?

Through this project, I hope to inspire people to become more appreciative of everyday objects. All it takes is a bit of imagination, and even ring binders can become a symbol of the Christmas holidays.

The Stationery Nutcracker was created over 100 hours using 20 ring binders collected from Secure Information Disposal Services Limited, 9 plastic bottles from the Yan Oi Tong EcoPark Plastic Resources Recycling Centre and a few wooden boxes from a local wine shop.

Challenges?
A challenge I faced early on was how to create a stable skeletal structure for the nutcracker. But once I started experimenting with the ring binders themselves, I realized that they were rigid, they already provide quite a stable structure. And even more, they are light – perfect for doubling up as a Transformer costume!

Why a career in creating upcycled art?
Product artists are naturally tasked with creating new products. But often, these products end up in waste centres, resulting in tens of thousands tonnes of trash being discarded everyday. As a product artist myself, I find this fact cruel and discouraging. So I hope to, through my upcycled products, remind ourselves to cherish what we have and not to blindly consume.

Upcycling tips
Take note of the characteristics of materials and try to use them in a way that optimizes their unique qualities. Try to keep the materials’ original use identifiable, so to create a surprise and memorable factor.

我們邀請到文件夾胡桃夾子的創作者張瑋晉，與我們分享今次的創作。

我是…
一位環保產品設計師 (2010至今)，現在和本港不同機構合作收集廢料，研發和生產不同的舊物再造產品。

文件夾胡桃夾子
起初的計劃創作構思是利用辦公室裡找到的廢物，而剛巧我收到一批廢棄的辦公室文件夾。平日它們基本上都是「工作量」的代名詞，大家見到它都會想避而遠之。若果能把它們改頭換面，變成節慶的胡桃夾子，大家下班時見到不是會感到很驚喜嗎？

藉著今次計劃，我希望喚醒大家對周邊事物的好奇心，其實只要花點心思，廢棄文件夾也能變成「聖誕假期」的象徵呢！

這個文件夾胡桃夾子共用上超過100小時製作，並用了從資訊機密處理有限公司回收的20 個文件夾、從仁愛堂環保園塑膠資源再生中心收取的9個膠筒和本地洋酒商店棄置的幾個木箱組合而成。

創作過程中的困難
當初在繪畫草圖時，胡桃夾子的鞏固結構和組裝都是令我最煩惱的部份。當我開始試造結構時便發現這些文件夾其實本身都已很堅固，而且亦很輕便，甚至可以穿戴在身上扮演變型機械人呢！

為何從事環保產品藝術創作？
作為一個產品設計師，職責是不停創造新產品，結果卻造成每天幾萬噸的固體廢物送去堆填區，實在於心何忍！因此，我希望透過運用廢料創作，提醒大眾要珍惜身邊的東西，不要盲目消費。

選擇物料貼士…
注意物料的特性，盡量善用和發揮它的特質。希望大家能一眼認出它原本是什麼，這才會覺得驚喜和留下深刻印像。

創作助理 Helpers: Scotfield Lo and Barbara Lam