ON THE BLOG: Turning the tide on plastic

So Rox, can you describe your work for us?
My art practice involves gleaning for marine plastics along my local beach, Bondi, or a little further away, along Rose Bay Beach. Sometimes I find single-use industrial plastics, or I source discarded plastic items destined for landfill, and use these in my artworks too.

Most days, I glean along my local and our very beautiful Bondi Beach where I collect weather-worn fragments from the sand. I bring these plastics home to my studio. I clean and then categorise the materials by size, colour and shape. Using a jewellery-like process of drilling a hole into each piece, I thread the material onto wire to construct sculptural garlands and forms.

The resulting artworks I make are reflections of the coastal place I live and present a snapshot of the proliferation of plastics we, the human race, continue to use in overwhelming quantities. I hope my work triggers deep thinking and deep conversations about the complicated relationship we have with plastic as a material and makes us re-think ways we can grapple with this serious problem.

Photo credit: Enzo Amato

What first inspired you to work in this way?
Many years ago, I had a lightbulb moment at the Sydney Aquarium.  I was listening to Jennifer Lavers, Marine Scientist from Adrift Lab, speaking about her research on Lord Howe Island. She described how shearwater birds were mistakenly ingesting pieces of plastic instead of food with devastating consequences, leading to poor health or death. Jennifer and many other scientists provide sobering evidence that plastics are wreaking havoc on our environments, our oceans and waterways, ecosystems and our very own bodies. In fact, it’s now been shown that even our DNA and blood contain traces of microplastics. Plastic traces have been found in freshly fallen snow in the Antarctic and plastic production will likely triple by 2050, a date that is getting scarily closer.

What do you reflect on as you work?
As I glean, as I drill, as I thread and construct my garlands, I often think of each piece as I hold it in my hands. I think about where it has come from; how it was made; what fossil-fuel based material, colours, and chemicals were used; what memories it contains.

I ask - has it been tossed into the ocean, or played with on the beach by a young child? Or been used on a building site by a tradie? What damage might it have caused, had I not picked it up?

Photo credit: Enzo Amato

What advice do you have for the Second Nature readers to take personal action to reduce the impact of plastics locally, and beyond?

• Audit your plastic consumption, single use and general plastic consumption, at home, at work, at school, in your local community groups. Think about being the recycling champion that shares information and resources with your colleagues or your neighbours! There are great resources available at Plastic Free July, Banish, Scoop, read about plastics and waste and be inspired to be a change agent.
• Are you recycling carefully and in line with the sustainable waste services that Waverley Council offers?
• Do you have reusable drink containers, such as Keep cups or water bottles handy to take with you on your local walks, in the car or to work?
• Support Responsible Cafés, restaurants and organisations that are trying to reduce their single use plastic consumption and environmental footprint.
• Get involved with clean up groups such as Plastic Free Bronte, Clean Up Bronte and commit to Clean Up Australia Day’s major yearly event on Sunday 2nd March 2025.

How can people see your work?

I’m one of the artists at the Waverley Art Studios on Bondi Road. Contact me if you’d like to visit the studio and see my work. Or visit  https://www.roxdeluca.com/  I’m on Instagram too.
Come and see the upcoming exhibition at Bondi Pavilion called:  Common Ground (7 Feb – 16 March) and stay tuned for more information on artist talks and other activities.

Photo credit: Recirculate, Australian Catholic University, McGlade Gallery