Plastics live forever -- as art

Chad Moore, an artist who lives in Oakland, California, uses the plastic we come across every day in order to examine consumerism through sculpture.

According to an artist statement from Moore:

"The impetus for some of these pieces springs from the debris found in San Francisco, a result of homelessness and mental illness, as well as a physical manifestation of the failures of consumerism for the individual. On a macro level, this series addresses the fusion of our detritus with the natural world and the food chain, such as the Pacific Garbage Patch or plastics that are consumed and digested by birds and marine life."

Above is Marbled Iceberg #1 from 2015. It is composed of a "speaker stand, plastic bags, foam peanuts, bubble wrap, plastic baskets, metal door threshhold plate, telephone cables, audio cables and metal wire."

Moore's mother worked at Walmart. He recalls the chaos tied to consumerism, particularly Black Friday sales sprees.

"My mother...told stories of fights that broke out during Black Friday sales. Grown-ups fighting like children over discount merchandise. Often the sheriff's department needed to intervene."

Above is Asherah (The Fertility Goddess) from 2019. It is composed of "baby formula bottles, fertilizer bottles, saw horse, metal wire and zip ties."

"These stories seemed outrageous, almost unbelievable, but were true and, in a way, sum up my interest in human consumption. Particularly the consumption of fast-moving consumer goods that are purchased often, used quickly, are relatively cheap and sold in volume," according to Moore.

Above is Marbled Iceberg #2 from 2016. It is composed of a "metal pole, metal wire, fan parts, plastic bags, various plastic packaging, garden hose and nylon rope."

Moore uses the objects that people either recycle or throw away. 

"In my work, I address questions about consumerism through sculptures and installations created with the leftover packaging of consumables and related materials of all types -- plastic shopping bags, shampoo and water bottles, various cords, cable and tubing, etc. I make a wire framework and attach the materials on top of one another," he writes.

Above is Pyre #2 from 2018. It is composed of "plastic bottles, chrome fender, colander, plastic bags and wire."

When It Hits the Fan from 2016 is composed of a "window fan, plastic bottles, metal sheeting, metal wire, zip ties and audio cables."

The Storm God from 2018 is composed of  a "water cooler, bull horns, copper tubing, conduit hose, plastic bucket, fan parts, wool sweater and wire."

Here is a detailed image from The Storm God.

Trying to Hold Your Shit Together from 2016 is composed of  a "reclining chair, metal poles, metal wire, clothing, blankets, sleeping mat, plastic bags, plastic tubing, rope, ventilation ducting and pulleys."

Marbled Iceberg #4 from 2016 is composed of a "speaker stand, plastic bottles, plastic bucket vacuum hose, nylon strap and metal wire."