The Plasticine is "an era in Earth's history, within the Anthropocene, commencing in the 1950s, marked stratigraphically in the depositional record by a new and increasing layer of plastic polymers]". It is a time period in which we can see the rise and impact of plastic in both cultures, and ecologies the world over. Today much of the discussion concerning the Plasticine deals with plastic waste, and how it impacts the lives.

The intention of this website is to explore the various perspectives of the Plasticine to provide a wholistic approach to understanding the phenomena. Using a multi-media approach, various forms of art, informative video, and statistical information hosted here are intended to present the viewer with a greater understanding as to the prevalence of plastic in our daily lives, and how different people interact with such a prolific substance. Here we examine how plastic production has influenced western culture, how other parts of the world interact with plastic (particularly plastic waste), and how the larger imagination of the Plasticine and change makers have been influenced by data. The intention is to show how intimate and complacent western society has become with our plastic, and explore how those ideas are challenged though differing perspectives.

Plastic is a catch-all term for various forms of malleable, man-made polymers with differing properties. These materials are the product of a process which transforms natural materials from oils, gases, and other organic substances into cheap, versatile, light, flexible, and long lasting forms. These polymers are extremely useful in just about every industry or product, but due to their longevity have become an extremely abundant burden to the planet's inhabitance. It is due to a combination of cheap overproduction and single-use intention that plastic waste pollution has become a serious issue in many parts of the world. Things would be difficult enough if the issue with plastic waste only dealt with quantity, however various forms of plastic can pose health and environmental dangers to both humans and other forms of life.

The origins of the first man-made plastic come from a time when people were looking for a substitute for the ever diminishing supply of ivory in the 1800s. The first plastic polymer created from plant fibers was then invented by John Wesley Hyatt, which could be tinted and shaped to mimic other naturally occurring substances. Over time this discovery would inform the creation of entirely synthetic forms of plastic, nor reliant on nature for resource extraction. "Nature only supplied so much wood, metal, stone, bone, tusk, and horn. But now humans could create new materials. This development helped not only people but also the environment" (9). Additionally, due to the cheap cost of production, these new plastics were seen as a possible way of making goods more affordable and thus more accessible to a larger population. However these polymers would not see prominent public use until the 1950s after WWII.

Like many of the technologies that now permeate the daily lives of the general public, the commercial use of synthetic plastic has its origins in its use and development for wartime technology. When the war ended, there were plenty of new plastic manufacturer in places like the United states which slowly changed their operation to focus on the consumer market. The proliferation of plastic in the United States consumer economy was furthered by post-depression era consumer mentalities, as "after experiencing the Great Depression and then World War II, Americans were ready to spend again, and much of what they bought was made of plastic" (9). Plastic slowly began to replace other, more naturally made products, and established itself as a mainstay of American consumerism.

Plastic replaced the metal and glass in cars, the dishes and furniture in our homes, and even the clothes on our backs. Food and other products started getting wrapped in plastic. Even the foundational elements of homes like plumbing and electricity became dominated by plastics like PVC piping and plastic wire coating. Plastic even replaced our entertainment, such in the case of toys, radio, and television. Possibly the greatest impact plastic has had on our modern society is not only in how it has invaded our daily lives, but improved them through technology. Without plastic, we would not have nearly the sanitary or versatile types of medical instruments that save lives today. Without plastic we would not have the same kind of lightweight computers, phones, or other electronic devices that we depend on for much of our day. Plastic is now integral to our way of life.

Plastic, due to its inexpensive nature, and ease of manufacturing just about anything, made all sorts of products affordable to the general consumer. It is with this drive of capital, that we see an explosion of plastic production, and the start of our concerns with this universally useful substance.