‘Plastic. Remaking our world’: A hackneyed debate through a refreshing lens

Germany based Vitra Design Museum’s latest exhibition 'Plastic. Remaking our world’ showcases tangible creations that serve to comment on the apathetic usage of plastic in our everyday lives. Through large-scale installations and films, the exhibition serves the purpose of attracting attention towards the unspoilt landscapes that could be witnessed frequently before plastic became a commonly used material. In doing so, it juxtaposes the past, present and future scenarios next to each other and presents audiences with the dual nature of this controversial material. Sometimes a boon, and at other times a bane, plastic has both leveraged efficient developments as well as contributed towards the drastic degradation of the environment.

As the title of the exhibition suggests, it nudges the visitors to ‘rethink’ the world as a more sustainable space, devoid of plastic. Curated to serve as an experiential showcase, the exhibition begins with an immersive large-scale installation that visually illustrates the conflict that arises from the production and use of plastic in a video format. With documentary images that highlight the scale of plastic pollution, the showcase makes a pertinent and powerful point.

Although the exhibition largely serves to question the usage of plastic, it also delves on exploring the history of this material, thus serving as both an informative and assertive showcase. A portion of the exhibition is dedicated to outlining the progress and evolution of plastic from the 19th century to the present. From making rare appearances in everyday life, plastic has now taken an omnipresent role. While its usage in the healthcare sector often affirms a positive role, the negative, often life-threatening effects of discarded plastic fail to absolve it from the criticism that it regularly faces.

The showcases and interactive sessions that form part of the exhibition serve to herald conversations around the role of this material. By involving experts from various backgrounds in the discussions about plastic, one can see that the plastic crisis is, in fact, not a simple problem. It is complex and layered and demands consistent introspection as opposed to blatant criticism. With the elaborate study of the evolution trajectory of plastic in tandem with the multifaceted plastic waste crisis, a better understanding and solution-oriented approach of the viewers ensues.

The event elucidates various ongoing crusades for sustainability globally reducing, recycling and upcycling plastic waste. Nevertheless, emphasis is laid on how waste reduction must begin at a much earlier stage of packaging and manufacturing. Design can serve as an indispensable part of this movement alongside industry, consumers, and politics. Design not only incites innovation but is also an incredible impetus to raise awareness and catalyse the process of positive change. Scientists’ and designers’ recent exploration of materials based on renewable resources in lieu of fossil fuels referred to as bioplastics also earns a spot among the showcases.

The exhibit offers a refreshingly objective perspective on the plastic crisis, portraying plastic as not just a global nemesis, rather a disputed material that needs reassessing and reflection. The art exhibition addresses the intricate roots of plastic that go as deep as our dependency on it. With the judicious use of plastic solely where necessary and employment of alternative materials wherever possible, the exhibition is a window to a reimagined future of plastic and the world that ensues.