Techno Trash Bin

Techno Trash Bin

2015
Computer keys, found bag, fibreglass and clothes
114 x 97 x 70 cm

I reinforced a large, woven industrial plastic bag, used for transporting substances including waste and rubble, with primer, fibreglass and resin to give it a final shape. I then covered the inside with black cloth and the outside with computer keys. The woven bag has been repurposed. The empty black view inside symbolizes chaos – this project represents Africa as an e-waste dumping zone for the developed world. At the centre of my project is a material that I work with daily, but is toxic. While trying to protect myself from the multiple hazards of e-waste, I sympathise with people, especially the youth across Africa (and the world), who are buying and manipulating it unprotected and unaware of the grave risks it poses to them, as well as to animals and the environment. According to environmentalists, the toxic materials found in computer equipment and other e-waste, including lead, cadmium, chromium, mercury, and barium, affect the brain and the kidneys. The older the computer, the higher the level of toxic elements (Farid, 2012).