The Cast-Off Recast: Recycling and the Creative Transformation of Mass-Produced Objects

by Patrick Arthur Polk

On a daily basis remnants, scraps, rubbish, and junk are filtered through both formal and informal salvage operations in urban centers throughout the world. The essays included in this volume--"Muffler Men, Menecos and Other Welded Occupational Sculpture from Automotive Debris," " The Mafundi of Dar es Salaam," and "Castoff/ Living on the Street"--explore the process of recycling within distinct environments. What emerges is a remarkable justaposition of diverse material behaviors informing the "lived experiences" of residents of Los Angeles, Tokyo, So Paulo, and Dar es Salaam.

147 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999