We the Future
Alejandro Durán: How I use art to tackle plastic pollution in our oceans
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Alejandro Durán uses art to spotlight the ongoing destruction of our oceans' ecosystems. In this breathtaking talk, he shows how he meticulously organizes and reuses plastic waste from around the world that washes up on the Caribbean coast of Mexico -- everything from water bottles to prosthetic legs -- to create vivid, environmental artworks that may leave you mesmerized and shocked.
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:13
This is Sian Ka'an.
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Just south of Tulum
on Mexico's Caribbean coast,
on Mexico's Caribbean coast,
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it's a federally protected reserve,
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a UNESCO World Heritage Site
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and one of the most biodiverse
regions on the planet.
regions on the planet.
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But when I first visited in 2010,
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I was horrified and completely confused
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as to why the beach was covered in trash.
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I soon realized that it was floating in
from all over the world.
from all over the world.
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I've since returned,
after that first journey,
after that first journey,
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several times a year
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to visit Sian Ka'an,
to the country of my birth,
to the country of my birth,
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to work with this trash.
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And so far,
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we've documented garbage from
58 different countries and territories
58 different countries and territories
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on six continents,
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all washing ashore
in this paradise in Mexico.
in this paradise in Mexico.
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Although I can never know
where a product was dropped,
where a product was dropped,
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01:01
I can, at times, based on the label,
know where something was made.
know where something was made.
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In red, you see all of the countries
represented by their trash
represented by their trash
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in Sian Ka'an.
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01:11
Such as these Haitian butter containers
in all shapes and sizes,
in all shapes and sizes,
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01:15
Jamaican water bottles.
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01:17
Not surprisingly, a lot of the stuff
is from neighboring Caribbean countries,
is from neighboring Caribbean countries,
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01:20
but the stuff is from everywhere.
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Here's a sampling
of international water bottles.
of international water bottles.
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01:24
And one of the ironies is that
a lot of what I'm finding
a lot of what I'm finding
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are products for cleaning
and beautification,
and beautification,
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such as this item from the United States,
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which is actually made
to protect your plastic,
to protect your plastic,
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01:37
(Laughter)
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shampoo from South Korea,
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bleach from Costa Rica
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and a Norwegian toilet cleaner.
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And it's items that are all
very familiar to us,
very familiar to us,
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or at least I hope you're familiar
with these toothbrushes.
with these toothbrushes.
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(Laughter)
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Kitchen utensils.
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Toys.
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I'm also finding evidence
of burning plastic trash,
of burning plastic trash,
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which releases cancer-causing
fumes into the air.
fumes into the air.
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02:04
People ask what's the most
interesting item that I've found,
interesting item that I've found,
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02:07
and that's by far this prosthetic leg.
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02:11
And in the background, if you can see
that blue little bottle cap,
that blue little bottle cap,
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at the time that I found it,
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it was actually the home
to this little hermit crab.
to this little hermit crab.
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This guy is so cute.
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(Laughter)
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(Laughter)
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And it's these fascinating objects,
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but also horrifying objects,
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each with their own history,
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that I use to make my ephemeral,
environmental artworks.
environmental artworks.
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02:37
And it all started with this image
in February of 2010,
in February of 2010,
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when I first visited Sian Ka'an.
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I noticed that blue was the most
prevalent color among the plastic.
prevalent color among the plastic.
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Purple is actually the most rare color.
It's kind of like gold to me.
It's kind of like gold to me.
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But blue is the most prevalent,
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and so I gathered some of the blues
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and made this little arrangement
in front of the blue sky
in front of the blue sky
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and blue Caribbean waters.
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And when I took a photograph
and looked at the test shot,
and looked at the test shot,
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it was like a lightning bolt
hit me in that moment,
hit me in that moment,
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03:02
and I knew I was going
to have to come back
to have to come back
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to create a whole series
of installations on location
of installations on location
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and photograph them.
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So this turned out to be a sketch
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for a work that I completed
three years later.
three years later.
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I had no idea that almost 10 years later,
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almost a decade later,
I'd still be working on it.
I'd still be working on it.
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But the problem persists.
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03:23
So I'm going to show you
some of the images
some of the images
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from the series that I called "Washed Up:
Transforming a Trashed Landscape."
Transforming a Trashed Landscape."
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Please keep in mind that
I do not paint the garbage.
I do not paint the garbage.
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03:33
I'm collecting it
and organizing it by color
and organizing it by color
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on the same beaches where I find it.
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This is my precious trash pile
as seen in 2015
as seen in 2015
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after putting on a first edition
of the "Museo de la Basura,"
of the "Museo de la Basura,"
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or "Museum of Garbage."
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It's fully my intention
to care for this garbage,
to care for this garbage,
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to exalt it,
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put it on a pedestal
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and to curate it.
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We have all seen devastating images
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of animals dying
with plastic in their bellies.
with plastic in their bellies.
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And it's so important for us
to really see those
to really see those
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and to take those in.
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04:12
But it's by making aesthetic --
some might say beautiful -- arrangements
some might say beautiful -- arrangements
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out of the world's waste,
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that I'm trying to hook the viewer
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to draw in those that might be numb
to the horrors of the world
to the horrors of the world
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and give them a different way
to understand what's happening.
to understand what's happening.
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Some have described
the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
the Great Pacific Garbage Patch
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as an island twice the size of Texas,
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but I've been told that it's hard to see
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because it's more like a smog.
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So through my artwork,
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I attempt to depict the reality
of what's happening with our environment
of what's happening with our environment
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and to make the invisible visible.
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My key question at first,
after starting the project,
after starting the project,
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was, "What do I do
with the garbage when I'm done?"
with the garbage when I'm done?"
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I was told by some
that it could be damaged goods
that it could be damaged goods
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after traveling across the ocean
and being exposed to the elements,
and being exposed to the elements,
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that it could become degraded
and potentially ruin a batch of recycling.
and potentially ruin a batch of recycling.
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The landfill was not
a happy resting place, either.
a happy resting place, either.
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And then finally, it dawned on me,
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after all of the effort by me
and all of the people who have helped me
and all of the people who have helped me
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collect and organize and clean this trash,
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that I should keep it.
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And so that's the plan,
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to use it and to reuse it endlessly
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to make more artwork
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and to engage communities
in environmental art-making.
in environmental art-making.
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This is an example of a community-based
artwork that we did last year
artwork that we did last year
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with the local youth
of Punta Allen in Sian Ka'an.
of Punta Allen in Sian Ka'an.
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A key part of the community work
are the beach cleans
are the beach cleans
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and education programming.
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And as this community
around the project grows
around the project grows
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and as my trash collection grows,
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I really believe that
the impact will as well.
the impact will as well.
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And so, over the years,
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I've become a little obsessed
with my trash collection.
with my trash collection.
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I pack it into suitcases
and travel with it.
and travel with it.
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I take it on vacation with me.
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(Laughter)
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And in the latest work,
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I've begun to break the two-dimensional
plane of the photograph.
plane of the photograph.
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I'm really excited about this new work.
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I see these as living artworks
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that will morph and grow over time.
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Although my greatest wish
is that I run out of the raw material
is that I run out of the raw material
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for this work,
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we're not there yet.
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So in the next phase of the project,
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I plan on continuing the community work
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and making my own work
at a much larger scale,
at a much larger scale,
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because the problem is massive.
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Eight million tons of plastic waste
enter our oceans every year,
enter our oceans every year,
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destroying ecosystems.
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Right now, as I speak, there's literally
an oil spill of plastic happening.
an oil spill of plastic happening.
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I see this project as a plea for help
and a call to action.
and a call to action.
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Our health and future
is inextricably linked
is inextricably linked
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to that of our oceans.
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I call the project "Washed Up:
Transforming a Trashed Landscape,"
Transforming a Trashed Landscape,"
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but it's actually transformed me
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and made me rethink
my own behaviors and consumption.
my own behaviors and consumption.
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And if it can help anybody else
gain more awareness,
gain more awareness,
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then it will have been worthwhile.
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Thank you so much.
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(Applause)
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