Cool Snow Globes

Let it snow…Let it snow…Let it snow…

Here’s the scoop about our collaboration with Cool Snow Globes for the exhibit Nature—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial.

March 2, 2019

Out of the blue we were contacted by Adam Blue who we had connected with in the near-recent past when he included our beach plastic artwork in the literary magazine Whitefish Review. He’s now involved with another project doing Project Management and Design at CoolSnowGlobes. https://coolsnowglobes.com And CSG wants to commission us to make globes with beach plastic for NATURE—COOPER HEWITT DESIGN TRIENNIAL on view May 10, 2019 through January 20, 2020. The museum gift shop wanted to have something in store that would connect with the enviromental theme of the Triennial.

Co-organized with Cube Design Museum in the Netherlands, the exhibition will feature more than 60 groundbreaking works from designers across all disciplines who are collaborating with scientists, engineers, farmers, environmentalists, and nature itself to design a more harmonious and regenerative future.

Given the magnitude of this opportunity we dropped everything else and right away started on prototypes. After many emails back and forth, we made 6 samples — red, blue, green orange, purple, yellow.

Yesterday we mailed two to China where the globes are put together. They will take a close look at our fabrication and will test our adhesive. If that all goes well, things will really heat up — or at least as hot as snow globes get, and we will be commissioned to make 60, yes 60 globes in rainbow colors.

March 22, 2019

There has been much in the news these days about China no longer accepting our plastic trash for recycling. The irony is not lost on us, that our beach plastic trash is going to China to be repackaged then sent back. What a strange and thrilling journey and what it says about global commerce and the international manufacturing world we live in.

OK!!!! We have been commissioned by Cool Snow Globes to create 60 diminutive beach plastic sculptures to be the magic kingdom inside the snow globes. 10 each of red, yellow blue, orange purple, green. Since they will be featured in the Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial, NYC, opening May 10, time is of the essence so we blocked out this week and I spent all day everyday, in the studio — long days for sure with much back and forth with Liz in Vermont and Steven in China.

By Thursday the bulk of the work was done. Kibibi was happy to help with the quality control.

Today our creations were packaged up and tomorrow they will be on their their way to China where they will be put into the globes, then sent to New York.

I’m whooped. It feels like a just ran a marathon and in some sense I did.

While digging deep for small pieces to add for color emphasis, I found this small cap, a bit smaller than a dime. I LOL when I saw the Made in China.

March 28, 2019

Words for the elevator speech about the globes:

One of a kind assemblage sculptures, in primary and secondary colors, hand-crafted from ocean-born plastic debris collected by two people exclusively from 1,000 yards of Kehoe Beach in the Point Reyes National Seashore. 

April 9, 2019

These pics from the factory in China. Boxed and ready to ship to NYC.

May 9, 2019

So happy to share the news:

Hot off the press – our cool snow globes.
“Nature” opens at Cooper Hewitt in NYC this Friday, May 10 until January 20, 2020. https://www.cooperhewitt.org/channel/nature/

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