ART by Ocean Sole

Just imagine: a beach in Kenya, white sand and blue waves. The sun shines on what the waves leave behind. Seaweed, shells and other totally different things. Something that doesn't belong there, a flip-flop. What's more, the whole beach is strewn with flip-flops! A large part of the world's population travels in flip-flops. This shoe is cheap to buy, but not durable in use. This, combined with an underdeveloped waste treatment system, means that in developing countries flip-flops end up in nature and ultimately in the oceans. Passionate about the oceans and aware of the importance of ecosystems, the Kenyan group Ocean Sole is tackling this problem.

Flip-flops washed up on the beach are collected, cleaned and glued. The creative team of artisans then transforms the flip-flops into colorful animals.

Three local and global issues are addressed: it prevents and solves plastic pollution of land and sea, it creates work and it limits logging for wooden artworks. Ocean Sole's inspiring works of art tell a special story, 'The Art of Upcycling'. Brothers Nicholas and Michael (Nic&Mic) have been the European partner for this colorful flip-flop-based art since 2014.