香港人丟棄的衣物數量驚人，對環境造成沉重負擔。根據綠色和平的調查，每名香港人平均每年丟棄 15.4 公斤衣物，相當於 102 件 T 恤。

紡織工業印染過程中常用的有毒化學品高達3000多種。有些化學物質在大自然中很難降解，它們會滲入土壤表面，污染地下水。此外，衣物至少需要 200 年才能被分解，分解過程中釋放大量溫室氣體甲烷，並加速全球暖化。

根據環保署的數據，2020年，紡織品廢棄量是87,120噸，回收率僅7.3%左右，超過9成仍可再用的衣物被送到堆填區。

近年的新冠疫情亦令回收商陷入困境，不可預測的出口限制導致舊衣服滯留在倉庫。儘管全球經濟放緩，但快速時尚市場的規模卻變更大，導致二手服裝供過於求的問題。長遠而言，向公眾宣傳「惜物代替消費，重用代替回收」至關重要。我們總覺得掉棄或回收以後便沒有責任，這件裝置希望能以具像的方式，讓大家反思我們日常的過度消費和浪費，並重新構想如何將舊衣服重新融入我們的生活。

Tee Knitter 是一個大型手動編織機組合，放大的勾針和機體可編織粗大的冷線。參加者可以帶來回收舊t-shirt，將其剪成一段段粗冷線，再親手利用編織機，編織成不同大小的圓筒形織物。

編織機運用大家回收得來的t-shirt，集合大家的力量，編織成不同大小的織物。這些織物最後可以如何使用？歡迎參加者在現場畫下構想，一起探索舊衣運用的可能性。

The staggering amount of clothing discarded by Hong Kong people is a heavy burden for the environment. According to a Greenpeace survey, each Hong Kong person discards an average of 15.4 kilograms of clothing every year, which is equivalent to 102 T-shirts.
Over 3,000 kinds of toxic chemicals commonly used in the printing and dyeing process of the textile industry. Some chemicals are difficult to be degraded in the natural and they will penetrate into the soil surface and pollute the groundwater. In addition, clothing takes at least 200 years to decompose, which releases the greenhouse gas methane and accelerates global warming.
According to the data of the Environmental Protection Department, in 2020, the waste of textiles was 87,120 metric tons, and the recycling rate was only about 7.3%, and more than 90% of the clothes that were still reusable were sent to landfills. 
In recent years, the covid-19 pandemic has also put recyclers in a difficult position. Unpredictable export restrictions have caused used clothes to be stranded in warehouses. Despite the global economic slowdown, the market size of fast fashion has grown larger, resulting in the problem of oversupply of second-hand clothes. In the long run, it is critical to promote to the public that  “Waste Not rather than Consume, Reuse rather than Recycle”. Consumer oven feels no responsibility after discarding or recycling. This installation hopes to make people rethink our daily excessive consumption and waste, and reimagine how to integrate old clothes back into our life.
The Upcycle T-shirt Knitting Machine is a large hand knitting installation with various size of knitting looms, they are designed with enlarged hook to knit thick yarns. Participants are invited to bring their own old t-shirts, cut them into yarns, then use the knitting machine to weave into different knitting structure.
A soft and colourful structure that could be a public space stool, a rope net in a playground or even a giant cuddle animal, possibilities are endless and our imagination is the only limit.

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