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

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 Wonders: Occupational Sculpture from Automotive Debris," "Streetwise: The Mafundi of Dar es Salaam," and "Castoff/Outcast: Living on the Street" - explore the process of recycling within distinct environments. What emerges is a remarkable justaposition of diverse material behaviours informing the "lived experiences" of residents of Los Angeles, Tokyo, Sao Paulo, and Dar es Salaam.