‘save paper, save animals’ by nigel tan
‘save paper, save animals’ by nigel tan from singapore is one of the shortlisted entries from more than
2000 participants in the ‘endangered species‘ graphic design competition, organized by designboom
in collaboration with tokyo designers week 2010.
the month long competition was open to students around the world, calling for powerful graphics
that stimulate action and debate on conservative efforts for our planet’s endangered species.
the winning and shortlisted entries will be shown to a wide range of audience at the main venue
of this year’s tokyo designers week.
the series of silkscreened posters on previously used paper bags aim to raise awareness of the irreversible
effect we have on endangered species and their habitats when we senselessly waste paper products.
designer’s own words:_
‘the earth’s rainforests, notably the amazon, holds within it numerous endangered species slowly being
wiped out of existence by the actions of capitalist and consumerists nations. the world as we know it is
experiencing globalization, and it is much more flatter and interconnected than we might like to admit.
but the trust is, the very paper we use in the manufacturing of paper bags, writing paper and any paper
product, comes directly from the destruction of the trees, which are the very homes and habitat of these
beautiful and tortured animals. one can only imagine the horrified faces of these slowly diminishing
creatures that have been around for centuries, perhaps even longer than us. it is this very distance
between us, creating this ‘us and them’ mentality, that makes us so apathetic and cruel o their needs,
and to create a fiction in our minds that these animals probably do not exist, do not suffer. thus the solution
and the aim of my project is quite clear and came to me at that very instant once I discovered this.
keeping in mind that consumerism is a motion that no one can stop, I decided to use it as a vehicle:
my project’s aim is to bring the endangered creatures of the rainforests right to our doorsteps by creating
reusable paper bags and printing graphics of the animals with silk screen printing. the reason for this
manner of production is as follows: silk screening is a manual process which allows for more control
of the amount of ink used. this is a more environmentally-friendly approach to printing as no electronic
printers are needed (thus less fossil fuel burned). the motive behind he project’s principle is simple:
the objective is not to sop using paper but rather to to just appreciate paper and try to reuse them whenever
possible, as shown through reusing paper bags as a canvas for my posters. my belief is that people are
by nature apathetic and insensitive to the animals’ needs; they simply are not in the know. my job and
purpose is to inform them to make the right choice in the future, for the future.’_
silkscreening process
templates
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for those who wish to republish an excerpt of this article, please have the courtesy
to mention that the project is a part of the endangered species graphic design competition,
organized by designboom in collaboration with tokyo designers week 2010,
and link back to the original publication on designboom. thank you.