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A R T & T O Y B A Z A A R !
From Africa, Asia and the Americas
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In Senegal, Mali, Kenya and other countries in Africa, resourceful people have long excelled at fashioning toys from the available materials - tin cans, wire and scrap rubber and plastic that we would discard as trash. In addition to brightly colored trucks made from beer cans and wire bicycles, Indigo offers buckets constructed of tomato cans, and lunch-boxes and suitcases from tuna cans (lined with Senegalese funny papers!). Continually searching the world for more such innovations, we also offer cars, planes, purses and frames from Vietnam, tin ornaments from Mexico, papier-mache bowls from South Africa and cars and trucks from Cuba!
A museum show from the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe (and now touring the country) has featured recycled tin crafts such as these from Africa and all over the world. Read about them in the book Recycled Re-Seen: Folk Art from the Global Scrap Heap by Charlene Cerny and Suzanne Seriff, Abrams/Museum of New Mexico.
Our recycled products were featured in the March 2005 issue of Sky magazine. The article, Bags, Bottle Caps and Tin Cans: Craftspeople from Around the World Create from Recycled Materials tells the story of our long fascination with people's resourceful use of discarded materials:
Philadelphia gallery owner Tony Fisher grew up in Africa. Traveling the continent, his family would often see children playing with homemade toys—creations like cars of scrap wood with shoe-polish cans for wheels, or dolls sewn from shreds of fabric. In homes, he saw kerosene lanterns made from repurposed cooking-oil cans and storage containers made from pieced metal.
This Third World ingenuity still operates today, but what Fisher first saw done to supply things for the home is now also done as marketable folk art. American and European collectors are going to Indigo Arts Gallery, the store Fisher and Devi Cholet launched in 1986, as well as to museum stores and other specialty shops, to buy baskets, home décor, tote bags and toys—all made from surplus or recycled materials.
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Burkina Tin Bugs
Burkina Faso
Recycled tin cans and wire (5"l. x 2" h)
Made from insecticide cans!
Assorted colors & designs, in two sizes:
Small (3 1/2" to 5"l.): $9.50 each
Large (8" to 14" l.): $22 each |
Aluminum Bugs
Vietnam
Recycled wire & aluminum cans
(5 1/2"l. x 1 1/2" h. to 7 1/2"l. x 3" h.)
$9
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Small and Medium Bowls
Mini and Very Small bowls.
Wola Nani!
Papier Mache-covered Bowls
South Africa
Fabulous bowls decorated with colorful labels from sardine, pilchard and other cans! Made and sold to raise money for the South African AIDS charity, Wola Nani.
Comes in assorted colors, in five sizes:
Mini (4 1/4"diam. x 2" h.) $19 each
Out of Stock
Very Small (5 1/2"diam. x 2 1/4" h.) $22 each
Out of Stock
Small (7"diam. x 3" h.) $26 each
Medium (9"diam. x 3 1/2" h.) $32 each
Out of Stock
Large (10"diam. x 5" h.) $42 each
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Tin Roses (#rc-15)
Mexico
Rose made of tin from recycled tin cans, with barbed wire stem. Assorted.
(18"l. x 2 1/2" diam.)
$18 each
Out of Stock |
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Recycled Plastic Bag Dog
South Africa
Recycled plastic bags & wire
(16 1/2"l. x 10" h.)
Assorted colors.
$42 |
Recycled Plastic Bag Chickens
South Africa
Recycled plastic bags & wire
Assorted colors.
Small (4"l. x 4 1/2" h.)
$12 Temporarily Out of Stock
Medium (approx. 6"l. x 7" h.)
$19
Large (approx. 9"l. x 10" h.)
$32 |
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Tin Can Ornaments (#rc-14)
Mexico
Recycled tin from assorted tin cans
(3"h. x 3 " d.)
$14 each |
Dieg Bou Diar Tomato Paste (#rc-25)
Senegal, Burkina Faso
Recycled tin cans, wood, plastic handle, French funny-paper lining (14" l. x 3 1/2" d. x 10 1/2" h. plus handle)
Other colors & designs may be available.
$78
Temporarily Out of Stock
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SLR Camera (#rc-52-sm)
Mali
Recycled tin cans, wire, rubber & plastic
(5"w. x 3 1/2" d. x 3 1/4" h. plus strap)
color and brand of tin may vary
$52
Temporarily Out of Stock
FEATURED IN 2006 UN WORLD URBAN FORUM IN VANCOUVER |
Tin-Can Watering Can Ornament (#rc-76)
Senegal
Recycled tin from assorted tin cans
(3 3/4"h. x 6 1/4 " d.)
$16 each |
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Indian Glass Bangle Boxes (#bng-1-sm, med, long)
India
Mosaic of pieces of recycled glass bangles, on red felt-lined box with lift-off lid.
Mini Square (2" x 2" x 2")
$18
Small Square (3 1/2" x 3 1/2" x 3 1/2")
$26
Medium Square ( 4 1/2" x 4 1/2" x 3")
$34
Long ( 9" x 2 3/4" x 2 3/4")
$34
For more pieces made with glass bangles go to our Glass Bangle Art page. |
Indian Glass Bangle Picture Frames
(#bng-2-sm., med.)
India
Mosaic of pieces of recycled glass bangles, on picture frame
Small ((picture size 3" x 3")
$28
Medium (picture size 4" x 6")
$38
Large (picture size 5" x 7")
$46
For more pieces made with glass bangles go to our Glass Bangle Art page. |
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Mexican Tin Can Nicho Shrines (#rc-67)
Mexico
Recycled tin cans, wire & glass
color and brand of tin may vary
Center images come assorted and may be removed to use nicho as a picture frame
Available in two sizes:
Small - holds 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" picture (6 1/2"h. x 4" w. x 1" d. )
$22
Medium - holds 4" x 6" picture (11"h. x 6 1/4" w. x 2" d. )
$42
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Tin Can Frame Ornament (#rc-71)
Mexico
Recycled tin from assorted tin cans with glass over picture (interchangeable).
Heart (5 1/2"h. x 4 3/4 " w.)
Temple (4 1/2"h. x 3 1/4 " w.)
Star (4 1/2"h. x 4 1/2 " w.)
$12 each |
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Tin Can Gecko (#rc-72)
South Africa
Recycled wire, tin or aluminum cans with glass marble eyes
Assorted colors (grape soda can shown)
(approx. 12" long)
$19 each
Temporarily out of stock |
Tin Can Chameleon (#rc-73)
South Africa
Recycled wire, tin or aluminum cans with glass marble eyes
Assorted colors (Coca-Cola can shown)
(approx. 7" long)
$19 each |
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Tin Can Frog (#rc-74)
South Africa
Recycled wire, tin or aluminum cans with glass marble eyes
Assorted colors (orange soda can shown)
(approx. 6" long)
$19 each
Temporarily out of stock |
Tin Can Alligator (#rc-75)
South Africa
Recycled wire, tin or aluminum cans with glass marble eyes
Assorted colors
(approx. 10" long)
$19 each |
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Tin Can Geckoes and Chameleons
South Africa
Recycled wire, tin & aluminum cans
Assorted colors (Coca-Cola can shown)
Mini (3 to 3 1/2"l. x 3/4" h.)
$11 Temporarily Out of Stock
Small Gecko (7 to 8"l. x 1 " h.)
$18 Temporarily Out of Stock
Medium Chameleon (8"l. x 3 1/2" h.)
$26
Large (13"l. x 2 1/2" h.)
$36 Temporarily Out of Stock |
Flip-flop Sculptures from Kenya
Kenya
Recycled rubber flip-flops
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Recycled Sculpture from Kenya -
Kevin Kariuki
Kenya
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Recycled Sculpture from Kenya -
Julius Kimemia
Kenya
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Sculpture from Recycled Steel Oil-drums - Haiti
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Baskets from recycled Telephone Wire - South Africa
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Bikes, Motorcycles & Planes
Recycled Cars, Trucks, etc. |
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