A PARIS Magazine Autumn 2023 #82 | William Amor, the waste ennobler
William Amor, the ennobler of waste
Each year, the Grands Prix de la Création de la Ville de Paris honors six talented designers, fashion designers and craftspeople. Meet William Amor, winner in 2019 with his flowers created from plastic waste.
With him, a plastic bag becomes a poppy, a cigarette butt turns into a mimosa, a fishing net into a cheesecloth… William Amor has gold at his fingertips. This visual artist describes himself as a “ennobler of neglected materials”. Considering waste as a noble material, he works it like a floral designer or a jeweler, creating pieces for the great names in fashion and luxury. Self-taught, he has invented his own techniques, and has established his business in the arts and crafts sector. His award in 2019 by the Grands Prix de la Création, he experienced as recognition and “a tremendous spotlight. It gave credibility to my art. A challenge, given the raw material of my creations”. With the financial support that went with the prize, he was able to leave his residence at Les Ateliers de Paris and set up a permanent studio in Villa du Lavoir (10°).
Beyond the poetry of his creations, which “make ugly things beautiful”, William Amor wants to raise awareness of this “terrible waste, symbolizing the excesses of our society and the catastrophic effects on all living things”. For his latest monumental installation at the Centre Beaugrenelle (15′), he invited local residents to drop off a plastic bottle with a message inside, to create a floral cascade 13 meters long and 7 meters wide. And as the artist is also committed, a messenger sculpture was sold to benefit the association Les Bonnes Fees, which campaigns for women’s causes.
He, the child of Lorraine who made bouquets in the fields and had a passion for the living, still seems astonished by his success. “It all started with my encounter with a plastic bag! When I arrived in Paris in the 2000s, they were everywhere. I focused on these bags, and saw in them the transparency of petals.” The metamorphoses he creates are
spectacular. Roses and poppies twirl in her studio,
peonies and dahlias … you’d think they’d just come out of the ground.
Every day, the craftsman goes back to the drawing board to perfect his gestures and techniques.
“I find my creations more aesthetic and sophisticated over the years. These are hours work and meticulousness. But if you create to feel alive, you’ve succeeded. Today, I feel absolutely alive.
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