EXPLORATION OF TEXTILE WASTES FOR ART PRODUCTION IN ENUGU METROPOLIS, ENUGU STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Growing textile wastes in landfills and streets of major cities in Nigeria has become a general concern. There is also a lack of self-consciousness of a clean environment and poor public attitudes exhibited by the public. In view of this problem, it has become necessary to rescue some of these textile waste materials from landfills and street corners and turn them into art by up-cycling those textile waste materials. The study will examine the waste management system in Nigeria, using Enugu Metropolis as a case study. It will also attempted at recovering some textile wastes from landfill and refuse dumps and up-cycle them into valuable art that will be aesthetically pleasing. The study employed a qualitative research method. The research also employed studio explorations in the production of the works included in the research. Data for the research were gathered through both primary and secondary sources. Primary sources are mainly oral source such as interviews, photographs and others, while secondary sources are mainly written sources such as books (published and unpublished), internet sources, magazines, newspapers among others. In all, the study revealed that upcycling textile waste could serve as a contributory measure towards art productions and waste management in Nigeria. The work also made some useful recommendations on waste management and the roles art could play in the process.