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Molek FMRecycling With Art
KL Design Week 2009 came and zipped by us just as quickly! We got sucked into the whirlwind of the week’s events and came out dazed but unscathed. Heineken jumped on the bandwagon to participate too. The brand teamed with Thai designer Makorn Chaovanich to create an eco-art installation made out of Heineken cans at Capsquare KL recently. Wonderful! It reminds us of the art of cupping. It was on display from 26 March right up til 4 April for the biggest international design event ever held in Malaysia, and this is the first KLDW too. The event ran for 9 days and KL experienced a plethora of design-related experiences exposed to plenty of activities from workshops to exhibitions.
The Thai designer has over 10 years of experience in product design and is currently President of Industrial Designer Society Thailand (IDS) and Vice President of International Young Design Entrepreneur (IYDE), British Council. Makorn Chaovanich also picked up the Motorola Young Designer Award, Nike Future of Running Design award and International Young Design Entrepreneur (IYDE 06) by British Council. Very impressive!
The installation he made for KLDW at Capsquare was inspired by the recycling logo and was made out of 900 empty Heineken cans. So why use aluminium cans and not any other recyclable material? Chaovanich explained, “Cans are items that people consume and dispose of on a daily basis. Creating a piece of art using this everyday material is the best way to remind people to recycle.”
Environmental conservation and Heineken goes hand in hand, so this collaboration is the perfect combo. This is a great opportunity for Chaovanich as well, as he also collaborated on the Become Eco-Bag project, which JUICE uses religiously while doing our grocery shopping. He thinks Asia still has a long way to go in educating the region to gear towards a greener art industry. Chaovanich believes that eco-art is not just about the materials to create, but the tools and resources that consume the most energy to produce. Governments and companies in the region need to take note and act. We don’t wanna be cynical, but we know how that’s going to be. So guess it’s up to us to put pressure on the powers that be, eh?
Log on to www.kldesignweek.com for more on KL Design Week and www.heineken.com.my for Heineken’s initiatives.
