THE BULLETIN
Brazil: Recycling Sundays
August 5, 2010 by anna
Since arriving in SP I have been on the look out for small brands and businesses that are focusing on sustainability, but knowing where to look in this gigantic place is constant learning curve and adventure in itself. Imagine my surprise when I found about 15 brands displaying their veritable goodies in an open air bar on a sunny Sunday afternoon.
Attracted by a large spider sculpture made of old computers and other electrical has beens I ventured inside where I discovered a variety of products. There were stalls displaying well designed lights made from plastic cups, bottle tops, buttons, paper-clips (which only became apparent on closer inspection), cardboard chairs, glass jewellery, organic cotton baby clothes, water efficient plant pots, dolls/puppets, jewellery fashioned from electronics, sculptures and clothes. By far the most popular way to work at this little fair was to work with recycling and reuse through the form of jewellery.
I spent a good few minutes admiring the handy work and beautiful carving of the necklaces on display only to realise that they were made from the bottom of cans. The curve of the bottom of the can providing the perfect face on which to etch and carve an image, and light enough to be worn as a pendant or as a pair of earrings. Unfortunately, no website available.
For me the most fun products at the fair were designed by Liliana Pires, who uses anything and everything she finds to make cool and interesting jewellery. Nothing is beyond featuring on a headband or necklace: Nespresso pods (a particular bugbear of mine), diskettes, deodorant roller balls and biro cases and more were all utilised.
Ring pull and kinder surprise necklace
Even her packaging is made from former packaging – video cases, egg boxes, silver foil coffee bags. Like her products Liliana was fun and really enthusiastic about her eco jewels, not promising the world but enjoying what she was doing her stall showed stand out, obviously recycled pieces and more subtle, less obvious pieces too. Check out her website for more pics here.
Another popular material to work with was paper. This is not the first time that I have seen paper being used here in Brazil, though usually for bowls, vases and other similar items where the paper is taken in strips and rolled tightly into a solid, bead-like unit. The paper being used at this fair though, had been quilled. Seeing this brought childhood memories flooding back, I had completely forgotten the happy hours spent producing brightly coloured spirals, ovals and circles to make pretty pictures with. The key rings, earrings and charms were delightful, simple, skilled and tasteful.
So, my Sunday stroll produced a trip down memory lane and a tiny glimpse as to what might be lurking around the edges or beating at the centre of Sao Paulo’s creative community. My only regret is wandering around camera-less – sorry. Fingers crossed the fair was popular enough to be recycled next Sunday.
