Craftwork
Senior 3 · Fine Arts
Craftwork
Lesson 1 of 4
20 min
On the ground at Mbour, a coastal town in Senegal, an artisan has laid out his work: a red fire engine whose panels were once drink cans, a motorbike coiled from wire, and rows of small cars in the colours of soft-drink brands. Nothing was bought new. The maker knows his materials well: aluminium cans are thin enough to cut and fold, strong enough to hold their shape, and they never rust; wire bends into springs, wheels and frames. That knowledge is where all good craftwork from recycled materials begins.
Definition
Reuse: using an object again, as it is or for a new job. Example: a jar used as a pencil pot.
Recycling: breaking waste down into raw material to make new products, usually in a factory.
Upcycling: turning waste into a new object of higher value or quality, often by hand. Recycled craft in schools is usually upcycling.
Material property: a quality of a material that decides what it can be used for, such as strength, flexibility or resistance to water.
Workability: how easily a material can be cut, shaped and joined with the tools you have.
| Material group | Where to find it | Useful properties | Limits and hazards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper and card | boxes, cartons, newspapers, old exercise books | light; easy to cut, fold, roll and glue; takes paint | weak when wet; tears |
| Plastics | bottles, caps, containers, sacks | waterproof; light; bottles can be cut into strips and curves | many glues do not hold; never burn or melt plastic: the fumes are toxic |
| Metals | drink cans, tins, bottle tops, wire | strong; bend and hold a shape; do not rot | cut edges are sharp; tins rust |
| Textiles | old clothes, fabric offcuts, sacks | flexible; can be sewn, knotted, plaited and woven | fray; absorb water |
| Rubber | old tyres, inner tubes, flip-flops | tough, elastic, waterproof | hard to cut; heavy |
| Natural materials | banana fibre, maize husks, dry seeds, papyrus, sticks | local; biodegradable; can be plaited and woven | may rot or attract insects if not dried well |
| Glass | bottles, jars | rigid; transparent; waterproof | breaks into dangerous pieces: use only whole items, under supervision |
The chart in Figure 1 is a guide, but your own pieces may differ: a thick carton is stronger than a cereal box, an old T-shirt stretches more than a sack. Run simple tests and record them:
Worked example 1: choosing a material for a job
Mukeshimana is making a holder for toothbrushes that will stand beside a washing basin. Which material should she use: a cereal box, a plastic bottle or a fabric offcut?
Need: it will get wet often, so it must be waterproof, and it must stand upright.
Card: weak when wet, so it will collapse. Fabric: absorbs water and cannot stand up on its own. Plastic bottle: waterproof and rigid enough when cut to a cylinder.
Choice: the plastic bottle, with its cut edge bound with tape or fabric so it is not sharp.
Worked example 2: reading test results
A strip of carton held 200 g before it bent. After ten minutes in water, the same strip held only 50 g. By what percentage did its strength fall?
Loss: .
Percentage: .
Conclusion: carton loses three quarters of its strength when wet, so use it only for objects that stay dry, or seal it with paint or varnish.
<em>Recycled art from Senegal</em>, from BBC News Africa. Notice which waste materials the artists choose, and how each material's properties suit the object made from it.
Warning
Sharp edges. Cut cans and tins only with snips or strong scissors, wear gloves, and fold or tape every cut edge.
Never burn plastic to shape or join it; the smoke is poisonous.
Hygiene. Wash all collected materials, and wash your hands after handling them.
Tip
Collect, clean, sort, test. Know what a material can do before you decide what to make with it.
Practice
Explain the difference between recycling and upcycling.
Give two useful properties and one hazard of drink cans as a craft material.
Name three kinds of waste you should never collect for a school craft project.
A fabric strip held 300 g dry and 240 g wet. By what percentage did its strength fall?
Which material would you choose for a mat to sit on outdoors on damp grass: card, fabric offcuts or an old inner tube? Explain.
Materials task. Collect, clean and sort at least five different recycled materials. Test each with two of the tests in this lesson and record the results in a table.
1. Recycling breaks waste down into raw material to make new products, usually in a factory; upcycling turns waste into a new object of higher value, often by hand.
2. Useful: strong, bend and hold a shape, waterproof, do not rot (any two). Hazard: sharp cut edges.
3. Any three of: containers that held medicines, pesticides, fuel or cleaning chemicals; batteries; broken glass; light bulbs; anything from a clinic.
4. .
5. The inner tube: rubber is waterproof, tough and flexible. Card would go soft and tear; fabric would soak up water.
6. Check: five materials, cleaned and sorted; two tests each; results recorded with units where possible.
Walk round your home or school and list the waste thrown away in one day. Which of these materials could become something useful or beautiful?
Sources and credits
