New Oscar a ‘green’ statue

IN AN effort to promote awareness of the importance of recycling material, The Table Bay hotel commissioned artist Godfrey Dambuleni to create a sculpture of Oscar the Seal, the hotel’s mascot, with used Nespresso coffee capsules from the establishment.

The project was initiated when The Table Bay hotel’s general manager, Joanne Selby, came across artworks by Dambuleni that were created from the used capsules, which are made of aluminium.

The Zimbabwean-born, Salt River-based artist works with a team of seven employees, who assist in preparing the raw materials needed to create the unique artworks.

Dambuleni said he used various recycled materials to create his sculptures and artworks, including the aluminium coffee capsules, tin, sheet metal and bicycle chains. “I have been using Nespresso capsules for almost five years, making elephants, rhinos, human beings and more.

“Oscar was the first seal I had ever made, and it took me about three weeks to make the sculpture, using a total of 3 000 coffee capsules,” said Dambuleni.

He and his co-workers clean coffee grounds from the capsules before they are used for artworks, and use the coffee grounds as fertiliser to grow vegetables, continuing the chain of the circular economy.

“Our team works with recyclable materials because it is important to advocate the importance of environmental sustainability to the next generation, and that is especially applicable in art,” said Dambuleni.