SEA CHAIR: Into the Gyre
For this we can fund the film and create an exhibition about the project to spread the message about Sea Plastic around the world.
We have always been drawn to the sea, a fascination which led us to first conceive the ‘Sea Chair’ a project which is about making furniture using plastic that is polluting our oceans. We first heard about the huge problem of marine plastic in 2010, since then we have been designing a series of devices and contraptions to collect and process the sea plastic into sea chairs with tags indicating the geographic coordinates of where it was made.
The project began on a small beach in Cornwall, UK. We collected the plastic on the shore with self-made machines and turned them into chairs. Six months later, we went out to sea on fishing boats with a new improved furnace and made another sea chair with plastic caught in fishermen's nets.
Since then the project has really grown and we have now designed and built a new machine - a plastic extruder which melts the plastic at sea with only the power of the sun, forming a 3D printer that is can be used either on sea or on land, far from any external power source and where plastic trash exists without the facilities to recycle them.
This October, we have an opportunity to go onboard the Sea Dragon - a 72ft vessel dedicated to research of plastic at sea. We will be sailing to the North Atlantic Gyre from the Azores Island to the Canaries. We are running this Kickstarter campaign to raise funding to join other scientist and ecologists on this journey with our new machine on board.
Gyres are where ocean currents converge creating a vortex of plastic fragments. A lot of awareness has been generated around the Great Pacific Garbage Patch but there isn’t a great public awareness or research about the problem in the North Atlantic Gyre. We want to take the project to the North Atlantic Gyre to make a design collection with the waste we remove, as well as a film that can really engage the public about the issue of sea plastic.
During the expedition we will be collecting plastic on the beaches for the Azores and Lanzarote as well as at sea. We will document the plastic collected and sort it to be processed with a machine we have built. The machine uses a parabolic mirror to melt the plastic with the energy from the sun. The extruded plastic can then be 3d printed into a range of objects that will all form a touring exhibition about the voyage.
Previously with ‘Sea Chair’ project we received numerous awards as well as coverage from design world and beyond with articles in global newspapers such as the Huffington Post and The Atlantic. The project also was awarded the gold award at the Design Biennale Slovenia in 2013 and the the film about the project received over 1/4 million views and picked up the 2nd prize at Cannes film festival.
On the back of this publicity we distributed our open source manual for people to build their own low cost furnace and Chair encouraging local beach cleaning and action against plastic waste.
For the first time we are offering our sea chairs as rewards you can buy.
With this Gyre project we want to engage people in the issue, too often the scale of the problem frightens or depresses people into fatalism, as if it’s too late and we are on an inevitable course, which leads to people not wanting to deal with it. That is why when reporting the problems of marine plastic we need to make something inspirational and capture the imagination as well as very real solutions that people can act on.
REWARDS
A complete illustrated manual of how to make your own Sea Chair + personal message from Studio Swine.
A postcard (6"x4") from the journey with a personal thank you and a plastic sample from the North Atlantic Gyre.
Sea Tag keychain is made with collected sea plastic, with this reward you will also receive a password to access the Captain's Log- a blog with behind the scenes footage from the boat.
Synthetic fibres breakdown when washed and particles of plastic find their way into the Ocean. These unisex socks are made with natural Bamboo fibre which also has the benefit of being naturally deodorising. Each pair is hand dyed and embroidered. + Password to access the Captain's Log - a blog with behind the scenes footage from the boat.
A Sea Chair keyring with a brass shackle, monkey fist knot and a tag made with sea plastic + password access the Captain's Log - a blog with behind the scenes footage from the boat.
A box set containing a keyring, postcard, sea plastic and DIY manual + password access the Captain's Log - a blog with behind the scenes footage from the boat.
A box set containing keyring, 2 postcards, sea socks, and DIY manual + password access the Captain's Log - a blog with behind the scenes footage from the boat.
The Sea Knife is a sailing knife (13cmx2.5cm) with a high quality blade made from Japanese Stainless Steel. The handle is made from Sea Plastic with a granite-like appearance. You will also receive a photographic print and geographical co-ordinates of where it was made + password access to the Captain's Log- a blog with behind the scenes footage from the boat.
A box set containing a keyring, 2 postcards, sea plastic, sea socks, sea knife and DIY manual + password access the Captain's Log - a blog with behind the scenes footage from the boat.
A chair made with sea plastic with chromed steel legs. You will receive a photographic print and geographical co-ordinates of where it was made + password access the Captain's Log - a blog with behind the scenes footage from the boat.
The Original Sea Chair Design with Sea Plastic legs and tagged withgeographical co-ordinates + original framed drawing + photographic print signed by Studio Swine + Studio visit and invitation to exhibition private view + password to access the Captain's Log. (travel not included)
You will be the Official Sponsor of the film made by award winning Director Juriaan Booij. You will receive prominent credit and be mentioned in international press, future exhibitions and film festivals around the world.
