The award ceremony for Volvo Construction Equipment’s ‘trash to treasure’ Up-Cycling Design Arts Campaign has been held in Shanghai, China, where more than 20 works of art made from scrap machine parts were exhibited.
After a thorough process of online auditions, judge reviews and appraisals, four pieces of work from the 20 finalists particularly stood out and were awarded with a Grand Prize.
A further four pieces were awarded Most Popular Work prizes based on a tally of online votes. The ceremony marked the end of a six-month campaign that combined recycling with art in an inspired collaboration, helping to create public awareness about the endless possibilities of recycling.
The campaign, launched with the support of the China Resource Recycling Association, Art and Design magazine and Yang Design, was open to all applicants from mainland China, hoping to express their creativity and promote environmental care. The campaign encouraged people to give scrap machine parts a second life.
“
“Led by its core values of Safety, Quality, and Environmental Care, this campaign is new exploration of environmental conservation and recycling. We hope the fusion of arts and environmental care can help make recycling part of our daily lives, creating a green, sustainable urban life. Also, we are delighted to have so many participants, especially young people, displaying their talents and using their imagination to interpret the themes of environmental protection.”
The campaign has attracted public attention since it launched in November last year, attracting amateur artists and design students from universities across the country, including China Central Academy of Fine Arts, China Academy of Art and Tongji University. It also included Volvo CE’s clients, dealers and employees from the construction industry.
In less than two months, more than 700 online submissions were received, covering four categories ( poster, accessory, furnishing, and installation design). The total tally of votes reached a staggering 1.64 million.
Twenty pieces were shortlisted by the judges and the artworks were displayed at the awards ceremony.
The winners are Recycle and Protect (poster category); Antler Mirror (accessory category); Shelf (furnishing category) and Sea Horse (installation art category).
In addition to the cash prizes given to the grand prizewinners they were also presented with internship opportunities at Volvo CE’s headquarters in China and Jamy Yang’s Design Company.
“We want to promote talent and creativity, our world needs it,” says Stina Nilimaa Wickström, design director of Volvo CE and a competition judge.
“The amazing design and innovation demonstrated in this competition goes way beyond our original expectations. We are impressed by how these old machine parts were turned into amazing works of art.”
Si Xitian, one of the grand prizewinners, says: “Using scrap machinery as a raw material is a unique experience for me. Thanks to Volvo CE for creating such a platform where we can witness true creativity. Most importantly, our work raises awareness about scrap metal recycling and I’m fortunate to be selected to go Switzerland and enjoy a privileged experience with design specialists.”
