Objects made of recycled materials from the collection of Eila Kivekäs

Toy elephants

The elephant’s body, tail and legs are made up of four pieces that were cut from tin containers and soldered together. The tinplate ears were soldered from separate pieces, and the elephant also has bent metal spikes attached by soldering as tusks. The materials are from Bayer’s Baygon insecticide container and an Abro spray paint can, and the colours are red, green, black and white as well as blue, green, red, black and white.

Toy bus

A toy bus, tinplate from a can of Yotox insecticide, can lids as wheels, Benin. The bus has been assembled from pieces of tinplate that have been cut and soldered together. It is painted blue at the bottom and yellow at the top with a white stripe in the middle. The window openings have been painted on the side in red, the curtains in white and the texts in black. It says “TOUBA BEUGUE * BAMBA” at the front, “YALA YANA” at the rear and “TRANSPORT EN COMMUN A * MB” on the sides. The wheels are can lids. The rack on the roof has a blue and white checked plastic cover.

Toy dinosaur

A toy dinosaur, tinplate from an insecticide canister, Benin. The dinosaur’s body and legs are made up of four pieces that have been cut from a tin container and soldered together, and a saw-toothed part consisting of two pieces has been soldered to the back. The dinosaur’s body is enclosed. The red outer surface of the tin container faces out.

Toy transistor radio

A toy transistor radio, glued from pieces of waste plastic, Mali, the Dogon. The core of the plastic toy radio is black and the shell is blue plastic, the pink antenna ends with a white knob and the strap is orange, light-coloured and red plastic. The radio also has a channel selector and a volume control button on the other side. Made from recycled plastic by gluing.

Toy scooter

A toy scooter made from Bayer aerosol cans, Senegal. The scooter parts have been cut from a red and green tin can (Bayer aerosol cans) and soldered together. The frame has two pieces of tinplate on top of each other. The handlebars and stand are metal bars, and the seats are made of black tinplate. The wheels are iron discs covered with tinplate.

Toy bicycle

A toy bicycle, metal wire, Benin. A toy, a men’s bicycle with racing handlebars, made entirely of bent metal wire, with the exception of wooden cogs. The frame is made of thicker metal wire, the reinforcements and joints are thinner. The bicycle chain is made of string. The surface has been treated with a silver finish.

“Rococo” table

A “Rococo” table made from car sheet metal, Senegal. A low, oval metal “Rococo” table with projections on the long sides of the tabletop. The legs are strongly curved inwards and their ends represent an animal’s paws. There is a shelf between the legs at the bottom. The outer edge and legs of the table are painted light.

Scrap iron chair

A chair made of scrap iron, Guinea. A four-legged chair with a backrest but no armrests. The seat is round, and the backrest is a vertical rectangular white metal plate with two large holes. The seat is red, and the feet are painted blue.

Waste metal bucket

A bucket made of waste metal, Guinea. The bucket is made of two metal plates (seams on the sides) and a separate bottom piece. The handle is attached to perforated bent metal plates that are riveted to the edges of the bucket. The yellow paint on the outer surface of the bucket has partially peeled off. The inside is metallic and partly rusty.

Watering can

A watering can, a reused tin container with a soldered spout and a riveted handle, Guinea. The container is a green oval tin with a blue spout soldered to the bottom at a steep rising angle, and the nozzle is metallic. A green metal plate with curved edges covers about half of the mouth of the can. The handle is riveted to the rear seam of the can and screwed to the front edge of the cover plate. A metal plate supporting the spout is also attached to the same screw.

Beauty box

A beauty box made from Coca-Cola cans, lined with comics, Senegal. The wooden, rectangular box is lined with pages of comics on the inside and with opened and flattened Coca-Cola cans on the outside. There is an opened and flattened Nescafé tin at the bottom. There are wooden hoops on the cover, fastened at the ends with metal pieces and rivets. The cover also has metal fittings and a metal lock. Inside, there is a blue strip on one side to prevent the lid from opening more than 90 degrees.

Oil lamp

An oil lamp made of metal from a can with a light bulb as a reservoir, Benin. The oil reservoir is an upside-down light bulb surrounded by a frame made of tin strips. The strips have been used to attach the bulb to the base, which is the top of a spray bottle (?). At the neck of the lamp, the metal strips have been bent into a decorative accordion fold, and one strip forms the handle of the lamp. At the top is a silver tin cylinder with a lid and a wick holder. The wick is missing.

There are a huge number of people in the world without electricity, including many in Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, in many countries, energy production is very small-scale and underdeveloped and, therefore, expensive, and there is not enough electricity for everyone, not even for lighting. The distribution of electricity is also regulated by cutting it off from time to time.

Dustpan

A dustpan made from Nestlé baby food cans, Benin. An unused, partly rusty dustpan. Made from opened and flattened pieces of tin can (e.g. Nestlé baby food cans) by bending them into a shallow dustpan, the parts of which have been fixed only by folding one on top of the other, the triangular handle in the same manner.

Aluminium alloy pot

A pot of sand-cast aluminium alloy obtained from imported beverage cans. Guinea. A flat-bottomed, round aluminium pot with two handles and a lid. The lid has an embossed 12-point star and a handle in the middle.

Water bucket

A water bucket made from the inner tube of a car tyre, Mali. A black rubber bag with a round mouth. At the mouth, the rubber has been folded and a metal ring sewn on the inside. The white stitches of the mouth and side seam of the bucket are visible on the outside. Stitches on the inside of the upward curved bottom. A short handle made of metal wire. The bucket is at its widest in the middle, narrowing upwards and downwards.

Cupcake tins

Cupcake tins from tin cans, Benin. A flat-bottomed, wavy-edged small tin with a metallic inside. The outer surface shows the texts and illustrations of the original cans.

Stove

The funnel-like stove has a rectangular opening on the side of the wide shaft and a perforated disc at the base. Mali. As the use of firewood is one of the main causes of desertification in Africa, efforts have been made to develop energy-saving stoves. At the same time, the aim has been to ease the workload of women in rural areas and the time involved in preparing food and collecting wood from long distances. Improved stoves have been designed with local materials, such as clay and recycled metal. They clean the air in the cooking area by reducing smoke and are safer to use than traditional stoves because they are insulated. This reduces burns, especially among children. Such a stove saves up to 40% of fuel and can burn wood or coal.

Soap making tray

A soap making tray made from an oil drum, Guinea. A round-bottomed hemispherical tray, the material of which has been pressed into a corrugated shell-like shape. Made from an old oil drum. The caps have been left on the tray. The exterior is blue.

Briefcase

A briefcase made of tuna can material, lined with French Donald Duck comics, Senegal. The rectangular, box-like briefcase is covered on the outside with French tuna can material that has not been cut into cans. On a white background, there are circular light blue areas with two dark blue fishes and text as well as red text, such as “THON entier au naturel.” The cover of the briefcase is bordered by a metal strip painted black, and the locking mechanism is black. The support strips at the bottom of the briefcase and on the cover have been painted black. The carrying handle is made of white plastic. The inside is lined with French comics and car advertisements.

Baseball cap

A baseball cap made of various beverage cans, Senegal. A baseball cap made of flattened, green Perrier cans. The cap consists of seven metal strips and a peak. The edges of the pieces are perforated, and a white plastic strip has been threaded through the holes. The bottom edge of the cap has been trimmed with black leather. The trim has been attached to the cap by gluing. At the top of the cap, there are metal and leather circles glued on top of each other on the inside and outside.