Designing with Waste Materials

Dave Bramston is Associate Professor of Design, Environmental Design Department, School of Architecture and Design, CUMT Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, China. He has conducted workshops throughout China, UK and USA using waste materials and has developed a global network of contacts, including individual designers, organisations and companies, specialising in waste materials. His previous books for Bloomsbury/AVA include Idea Searching (2008), Material Thoughts (2009), Visual Conversations (2010) and Idea Searching for Design (2016).

• 1: Sourcing Waste Materials: Street and Factory Creativity- Unseen potential: The advantage of a seemingly useless material- Sourcing the unwanted: Where to find waste materials- Creative advantages: Hidden opportunities within random materials- Creative collisions: Combining abstract materials to find originality- Unlimited selection: The diversity of materials available- Steering the language: An alternative visual language- Respecting the unfamiliar: Aligning curiosity with alternative practice2: Low Carbon Practices: Tools and Time- An alternative process: Understanding work practices with waste materials- Low carbon tools: Simplistic tools for creativity- Lost inspiration: Applying forgotten making traditions- Keeping it local: A change of perception- Less rush. More care: Individual connection- Recognising lateral solutions: Something different- Eradicating difficulties: Common denominators3: Experimental Play: Getting Hands Dirty- Making mistakes: Originality searching- Material transformation: Revealing beauty- Question everything: Changing contexts- Unseen fabrics: Deconstruction assembly- Hidden details: Shrouded features- Unexpected: Identifying uniqueness- Encouraging fantastical: Beyond boundaries4: Craftsmanship: Care and Attention- Inspiration in everything: Understanding creative suggestions- Improbable: Developing the unbelievable- Creating collections: Multiple uniqueness- Beauty without resource: Simplicity works- Continual deconstruction: Rework, rework, rework.- Surprise and amaze: Unexpected outcomes- Alternative working practice: Work differently.5: SummaryEmbrace waste materials: Don’t waste materials- Summary- Summary overview6: Twenty projects- Acknowledgments

A wonderfully composed work that champions the creative and ethical transformation of material culture as we aim to move towards a more sustainable global outlook. It will undoubtedly inspire designers to work more imaginatively with the materials around them.