Strawpocalypse
Straws into waves.
March 20, 2019
This Artist Turned Thousands of Plastic Straws Into Stunning Ocean Waves
The installation highlights the problem of plastic pollution.
Plastic straws have become one of the great scourges of the ocean, and in a massive installation by artist and activist Benjamin Von Wong, they’ve been transformed into majestic waves with all the verve that entails.
The “Stawpocalypse” features green, blue, and black straws for water, clear straws for the surf’s froth, and yellow straws for sand. Von Wong came up with the idea after learning more about the problem of plastic waste in the world’s oceans. He wanted to create a dramatic scene that conveyed the scale of the problem.
“Numbers, statistics, and facts hit the mind, but art has the potential to hit the heart,” Von Wong told Global Citizen. “I personally see my role as an artist to give people convenient excuses to talk about the problem.”