MORE CLAY LESS PLASTIC was born in 2014 as an open group on Facebook with the intent of creating a network between ceramicists and the public.
THE MESSAGE The message we want to put through is very simple: more clay less plastic.
PLASTIC POLLUTION Plastic pollution has reached dramatic levels. Reducing the use of plastic is a fundamental and urgent step to save the environment and improve the life quality of every living creature.
INVOLUTION AS A FORM OF EVOLUTION The aim is to highlight respect for the environment by inviting people to rethink their daily habits, for example by avoiding disposable plastic. Colanders, cups, plates, bowls … once made of clay and then substituted with plastic, can be made of clay again.
PEOPLE Today MORE CLAY LESS PLASTIC is coming out of the web to meet people, promoting the reduction of plastic usage at cultural events, workshops and exhibitions.
ARTISANS MORE CLAY LESS PLASTIC believes in craft as a means of going back to a more human dimension, in artcrafts which are not just “things” since they carry stories and ancient knowledge within. By replacing a plastic utensil with a ceramic one we can all be part of a big revolution.
I’m all in favour. When I was young, plastic wasn’t ubiquitous yet. It was getting there, but you still saw much more glass, ceramic, and wood than you did plastic. Go on over and have a visit.
I partly agree, but I also disagree.
There are reasons why we make things from plastic and they can be good or bad.
Take bottles. There’s your throwaway water bottle that gets used once and then thrown away, often not even recycled. It just stays. It’s an awful waste of energy and resources. It’s also expensive for the consumer, but somehow they managed to convince those of us outside of Flint that we really need bottled water, preferably shipped around half the globe.
And then there’s my water bottles. They’re made from thick, durable plastic. Each contains between 16 and 24 oz. They’re light. Each morning I make some herbal tea and fill bottles for the kids and myself. This is cheap and economical and environmentally friendly. If I used glass bottles I wouldn’t only add a lot of dead weight to delicate children’s spines, but those would also be risky when they fall or run or jump.
When we go on trips we take them and don’t have to buy bottled or canned beverages at a location. That saves money and waste again.
And sure, make things from clay. Plates, cups (does anybody enjoy eating from plastic plates?). But be sensible. I don’t think that needing a new ceramic colander every other year because it broke is very environmentally friendly.
In the end I think it’s one of those nice ideas that haven’t been thought through. Also don’t forget tin and steel. Makes great dishes and colanders as well.
I’m a big fan of ceramics for home use, too. Modern ceramics can also be lightweight and more durable, but when travelling, they still pose something of a hazard, which is why we own a reusable set of plastic utensils and plates for family outings. For colanders and other heavy-duty items around the kitchen, stainless steel is still a favourite. Wood, for cooking utensils and cutting boards. You can’t have a proper kitchen without a large wooden spoon.
I looooove pottery as items of useful decor, and the abundance of potters (some of them carrying on generations of tradition) and the ubiquity of ‘farmers’ market’ type fairs means I have a large selection of artistic yet functional items at my fingertips.
(As a checklist of ‘How to know you are Latvian’ once said, “Green and brown are not unusual colours for pottery”.)
I don’t think there’s an effort to eliminate plastic, but to start weaning people off it, especially the thin, cheap plastic which is brittle, doesn’t last long, and breaks. A lot of utensils and such is made of that shit, because it can be sold super cheap. People who don’t have money buy it, and they have to keep buying it.
Well, I can support that idea, but ceramics ain’t cheap, even here. Reusable plastics, however, are pretty (more) affordable, and should probably have their profile raised, too.
Yes, it’s a problem all the way around.
I love glass and ceramic cookware and eating ware. Being relatively poor we’ve built up an eclectic mix of lovely styles, three of this, five of that, one of those and so on. Most are bought at second hand shops or garage sales. What isn’t ceramic is usually stainless steel or cast iron. The main place for plastic is storage and travel, but if you buy good quality it lasts for years anyway. I have my cycling lunch in a plastic box I’ve had for 10+ years, lined with a recycled bread bag or similar.
Really good idea -- plastic is causing some huge impacts and problems for other living things especially marine life and seabirds as this powerful clip shows :
http://www.midwayjourney.com/film-trailer/
WARNING : Confronting, upsetting images.
Done by another group who are working to tackle & raise awareness of this issue.
See also : http://www.midwayjourney.com/
That’s exactly why I usually dislike those poorly thought out consumer based approaches: They don’t tackle the systematic problems and often end up shaming poor people for being poor. Me buying a nice 30 bucks ceramic dish isn’t going to do anything about the problem mentioned above. It’s especially not going to solve the biggest issue which is the huge amount of plastic used for packing, which is often thrown into the environment, buried in landfills and not even recycled.
We need many ideas to tackle that.
A prized dinner set is three breakages away from being a bargain at the second hand shop. I’ve only ever bought one new dinner set in my life, a cheap willow pattern thing, just after we got married. Partner got bored with it and it got given away to a charity shop.