In the early XNUMXs, numerous colored plastic water transport tanks saved the lives of the drought-stricken people of Ghana. But now the containers themselves have become waste and are polluting the environment. An artist has decided to reuse them thanks to creative recycling.
Numerous in the early XNUMXs plastic cans to transport water, they saved the lives of the drought-stricken people of Ghana. But now the containers themselves have become waste and are polluting the environment. An artist has decided to reuse them thanks to creative recycling.
With the old plastic water containers Serge Attukwei Clottey creates artistic installations to sensitize local communities to the problem of pollution and waste. Plastic canisters are no longer used by local communities and have accumulated over time along the roads but also on the beaches, contributing to aggravating pollution levels.
Art is becoming a medium to attract the attention of the Government which should take action to protect the environment and to dispose of plastic waste. The accumulation of plastic along the coasts is endangering the lives of marine animals and the presence of waste in the city worsens health and safety conditions.
Clottey has been collecting old plastic cans for over 15 years. He found a way to reuse them by remodeling them to create works of art that he defines as 'paintings without paint'.
The creations, in addition to the plastic cans, incorporate other types of waste, such as electronic devices and wood scraps, but also natural elements such as shells. The artist lives and works in the city of Accra, the capital of Ghana.
“Every second in the world someone is wasting water. Every day in Ghana - where not everyone has access to drinking water - the streets are crowded with children carrying yellow buckets on their heads, in the direction of a source ”- she explained.
Ghana is one of the areas of the world most affected by climate changes and water scarcity, but there are also other countries in danger, such as Ethiopia, which is about to face the worst water crisis in the last 50 years. As far as drought is concerned, Zimbabwe is already in a disastrous state.
According to the artist, no one in the schools is concerned with educating the new generations to respect the environment, but his hope is that the installations created with plastic can contribute to inform the population and to change the situation both in Ghana and elsewhere in the world.
Marta Albè
Photo source: Serge Attukwei Clottey
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