Chris Coffman Upcycle Progress

My idea is to create an representation of a globe using bottle caps (seems to be a recurring theme) and an old basketball that I have laying around.  I think that this would serve as pretty cool artwork for any home, if done right.  I will start by spray painting the basketball blue like the oceans, and then use my collection of bottle caps to accurately depict a map of the world.  I think if I can categorize the bottle caps by which type of beer they were, it will look much better.   If the bottle caps end up being too large to accurately define the boundaries of a continent, I may have to shave them down in order for them to have correct edges.

I am also considering using an old lamp post to act as the axis through which the ball will rotate. Again, this will require precision in order to ensure I create an accurate axis. In order to do this, I will need to tilt the axis 23.5 degrees away from the ecliptic as seen below.

 chile-earthquake-axis

“http://assets.inhabitat.com/files/2010/03/chile-earthquake-axis.jpg”

I will certainly run into problems when trying to actually get the ball to sit on an axis.  I don’t want the ball to deflate, but I want to create as legitimate of an axis as I possibly can.  If I am to puncture the ball, I will need some way of pumping it up again or stuffing it.  I am still trying to figure out how to approach this issue.

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3 Comments. Leave new

  • Jacob McCormick
    January 31, 2016 10:22 pm

    Are you planning on using any specific bottle caps? I just had a few different ideas for color schemes, if you have the right bottle caps. One could be the color of the Earth as viewed from space, so Antarctica would be white, regions around the equator green, and places like Arizona and the middle east brown. Thats one thought, another one that could be cool would be to place bottlecaps from their country of origin when possible, so for example Heineken on Germany and Pacifico on Mexico, etc. That one is probably a little harder. Whatever you decide I’m exited to see it.

    Reply
  • Joseph Yoshimura
    January 31, 2016 3:17 pm

    I think my favorite part of this project is the fact that you plan on making it seem as real as possible. I think the bottle caps as the map of the world is already cool (and difficult) enough, but the fact that you are making it actually spin on it’s axis is especially fascinating. I think it would be another cool addition of each place looked similar to its climate or feel somehow. You mentioned that you were planning on using specific brands for certain places. If there was a icy or white one you could use it for Antartica, while a yellow colored one could be used for the desert. Or maybe even possibly using the specific bottle caps for their country of origin!

    Reply
  • Bottle cap designs have a 1950’s retro feel for some reason; I’m not sure why. Is that where you are heading?

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