HOORN, NETHERLANDS , December 27, 2014 /EINPresswire.com/ -- When most people throw something away, it ends up in a landfill. But in Katell Gelebart’s house, the chore of taking out the trash is the first step in an adventure that takes her all around the world. That’s because when Gelebart looks at trash, she sees treasure. The founder of ART D’ECO, Gelebart, an autodidact, ecodesigner, and pluridisciplinary artist, has been promoting the potential of waste since 1998. She’s so convinced that today’s trash is tomorrow’s gold that she’s written a 300-page book, Trash is Treasure, about seeing the beauty in waste. Her background in ecodesign has taught Gelebart how to value what the world discards, and to perceive that the world can be changed by reevaluating the things it throws away.

Turning that manuscript into an Amazon e-book has directed Gelebart to Kickstarter, where her crowdfunding campaign hopes to raise €7,000 by January 15. Trash is Treasure is written in English; Gelebart is collaborating with a professional proofreader who can interpret the artist’s vision and translate it into the text for the nonfiction book.

“If I were a native English speaker,” Gelebart says, “I wouldn’t need this professional help.”
Gelebart is modest; her English is charming and as expressive as any of her designs. But she wrote the book from her heart, not a dictionary. The money raised will be used for proofreading and editing the manuscript for Trash is Treasure; designing the cover; laying out the text and photo gallery; rewards; Amazon e-publishing; Kickstarter commission; and bank fees. If the campaign is successful, Gelebart’s stretch goals include hiring a literary agent so that the book can be published in hardcover format; building a photo gallery of her creations to accompany the book; developing tutorials on how to create her ecodesign articles; and showing the world that today’s trash is tomorrow’s gold.

Seeing trash through new eyes didn’t happen overnight. She was originally shocked when she realized, even in her home, how much plastic was used every day for all the food, drinks, and purchases. So she had a talk with her family about how their consumption affects their lives and the world beyond their doors. The family made a commitment to recycle. Gelebart committed her art to trash. “Change the way you look at trash and you change the world,” she says.

For 20 years, Gelebart has been a global garbage collector, traveling from The Netherlands to New Zealand to promote the potential of re-using waste and unwanted materials in the design field. She has completed two artist-in-residence programs in Southern India’s DUNE Eco Resort. She’s given lectures in Ukraine and she’s taught in Italy. She’s worked with students in fashion academies.

That’s great. So she has a busy passport and a talent for turning trash into art. Why should you care about what you do with your trash, and what does Gelebart’s passion have to do with how you live your life? What’s so transformational about trash?

Remember what she said? That trash is tomorrow’s gold, and that if we change the way we look at trash, we change the world? She’s not simply searching for crowdfunding supporters. When discussing her project, Gelebart is asking people to join her on this adventure. For a society that’s mired in consumerism, with people who identify themselves by what they own, this philosophy is life-changing. Gelebart laughingly says, “I don’t let Santa Claus make all the toys! Make them yourself!” She wants people to be more aware of themselves, not their things. She encourages all people to seek deeper awareness through meditation, possibly even to give vegetarianism a try. “Give things,” she says, “a second life.”

This vision of compassion and culture has won her renown. She’s the 2012 recipient of the A. Toepfer Foundation’s European Cultural Award, which honored her for being a creative visionary who revisits what’s already there. Her talk on the theme Trash is the Gold Tomorrow is a TED talk. Last year, her biography was published.

Reading her book will inspire you to see the world through different eyes. You will discover another humanity; parts of the world that you once regarded as living in deprivation will instead appear rich in matters of the soul rather than stuff. Changing the world might just be one of your resolutions for the new year to come. Join Katell Gelebart on her adventure!

About Katell Gelebart
Since 1998, artist Katell Gelebart (https://www.facebook.com/pages/ART-Deco-Design-Katell-Gelebart/346529062110657?notif_t=page_user_activity ) has been using her creative talents to transform waste and unwanted materials into design. A pioneer ecodesigner, Gelebart was awarded the Kairos Prize, for her contribution to European culture. Her e-book Trash is Treasure evokes her zest for life, her creative drive, and her passion for seeing beauty in waste.

Katell Gelebart
ART D'eco Design
www.artdecodesign.typepad.com
email us here