Wasteland: Using public art to catalyse commercial marine debris recycling

The idea for Wasteland began with a simple but powerful question: What if marine debris could be transformed into something meaningful, beautiful — and impossible to ignore?

Inspired by an experimental conservation project in Costa Rica, we imagined a public artwork that could challenge perceptions of plastic waste, and show its potential as a creative and circular material.

We refined the concept through a combination of research, visual development and prototyping — aligning it with the goals of the City of Sydney’s Art & About program. With a strong pitch and visual concept, we successfully secured project funding from the City.

From there, we brought together a collaborative team across design, manufacturing, rigging and logistics — each chosen not just for their skills, but for their alignment with the project’s purpose. Every detail, from the colour of the spheres to the suspension method, was planned to maximise impact and stay true to our message.

This phase of the project involved transforming the plastic waste collected by Eco Barge into usable material through an injection moulding process – a technique allowing for the efficient repurposing of marine debris.

Steps of the process:

1. Sorting & preparation: Early attempts failed due to incompatible plastics. Sorting was essential to ensure consistent melt points and safe moulding.
2. Melting & injection: Cleaned plastic was melted and injected into moulds under high pressure.
3. Cooling & solidification: Moulds were cooled to harden the plastic into perfect spheres.
4. Ejection & finishing: The finished objects were removed, trimmed and checked for quality.

Bringing Wasteland to life at Sydney Custom House was a monumental task. The installation demanded precise rigging and careful coordination to ensure public safety.

Suspended at an astonishing 24 metres from the ceiling, the finished installation was a captivating spectacle for both the team and on-site visitors!

Wasteland sparked strong engagement both on-site and online.

More than 50,000 people visited the installation at Customs House, drawn in by its striking visuals and powerful message. To extend its impact, we created a digital storytelling campaign — using photography, video and social media to connect audiences with the project’s purpose.

A short video produced with the City of Sydney reached nearly 40,000 views in its first week. Combined with features in media outlets like The Design Files, the project reached an estimated online audience of 100,000.

With support from the City’s marketing team and our own Instagram community, Wasteland became a shared conversation about waste, design and possibility.