A sales exhibition of restored waste items, expertly led workshops and short, inspirational lectures in the form of TED Talks are part of the programme of Days of the Discarded by which the transformative power of art in the work with discarded items and discarded communities is demonstrated.
Days of the Discarded is the culmination of the two-year project RoUm – a collaboration with the Roma community and artists which through communal work they repurpose discarded waste items and create designer pieces and works of art with the aim of starting a social enterprise of the creative industry in the Roma community.
The idea of RoUm is based on the customs of Roma communities who have a long tradition of using and exploiting discarded items and preserving traditional crafts, whilst demonstrating great entrepreneurial skills as a community and at the same time reducing the amount of waste in our communities. Designers and artists join in with this Roma tradition and with their mutual strengths in RoUm old and new unique items which at the same time create new economic value are born.
The Days of the Discarded features a sales exhibition of discarded items which with a process of upcycling have become attractive items for the decoration of spaces, whilst the Roma people who have been learning and acquiring the new skills of repurposing items for the last two years, share their knowledge and experience in the role of mentors in educational workshops for all the people of the city in 2020. They will also visit the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb and the Arts Academy in Split as lecturers presenting the project to students. The Days of Discarded programme also includes short discussions in the form of TED Talks on the subjects of upcycling, inclusive design and examples of good practice.