Plastic World

My scuba diver.

I've been working hard on getting my solo show ready. It's a huge project, an installation of four different life size environments. Sea, Mountain, Rain Forest and Desert. Life size. I'm stressed.

The show opens Friday night and I'm making it completely out of recycled materials. The neighbors must think I'm nuts. Instead of taking out the trash I'm bringing it in. So far I've been cutting tin, melting plastic, tearing blue jeans and wrapping people in plastic, just to mention a few things. 

There have been a lot of unseen consequences, I've been burned, cut, bruised and I wake up every morning with my hands swollen. At this point they're staying swollen all day, but I thought that might happen. What I didn't see was how aware I would become of the environment. It's ironic. 

I wanted to make people more aware of what all this trash was doing to us, and hopefully someone will get it. I now see the reality of the problem. This process has made me pay attention. In my bathroom alone are plastic hairbrush handles, combs, deodorant containers, cream bottles, shampoo and conditioner bottles, tooth brushes, the water pick, toilet brush, scrubby, hair jell container, rubbing alcohol bottle, witch hazel bottle, hair detangler bottle,

hairspray bottle, razors, hair clips, hair pins, headbands, make-up containers... okay, I won't keep going, but trust me, there's lots more. And NONE of it will biodegrade. 

The problem is overwhelming. Recycling won't do it. It won't make even the smallest dent in the problem. We have to stop using plastic. Period.