FABnyc's Load OUT! Announces Record Attendance

On Saturday, April 6, 2013, Fourth Arts Block (FABnyc) was able to divert an estimated 2.75 tons from the waste stream through Load OUT!, the organization's bi-annual reuse and repurposing event. Load OUT! establishes a local distribution spot for theaters and community groups to share materials they no longer need, while providing free, responsible recycling opportunities to the community at large.

On April 6th, artists and community members flocked to 19 E. 3rd St. to scavenge gently used treasures for their next projects. Materials available for the taking were contributed by local cultural organizations including La Mama E.T.C., Danspace Project, 14th Street Y, and New York Theatre Workshop's costume shop. Community members also dropped off e-waste, clothing, and textiles at Load OUT! to be recycled or repurposed by GrowNYC, Wearable Collections, and the Lower East Side Ecology Center.

"The event received a tremendous amount of media exposure this Spring, which led to an unexpected turn out of around 500 attendees. This has never happened before! Community members and artists waited patiently for their chance to rifle through donations in a line that wrapped around the block and extended along 2nd Ave., much to our surprise and disbelief," said FABnyc Executive Director, Tamara Greenfield.

Load OUT! also included a reuse and repurposing workshop with Scrapyard Challenge as part of the day's activities. During the workshop, participants came to 19 E. 3rd St. to scavenge for materials, which they then used to create unique musical instruments. Additionally, Artist Amanda Browder was stationed on site at Load OUT! to collect textiles for her project to cover an entire building on E. 4th St. in a fabric sculpture, commissioned by FABnyc's SUSTAIN program. Both the instruments created during the Scrapyard Challenge workshop, and Browder's in-progress fabric sculpture will be on display at FABnyc's exhibition at the IDEAS CITY StreetFest on May 4, 2013.

With the generous help from partners, FABnyc facilitated proper recycling for materials: Lower East Side Ecology Center was able to take 1000 pounds of e-waste for recycling and Wearable Collections recycled 240 pounds of textiles. Additionally, FABnyc was able to reuse and recycle an estimated 4260 pounds of materials (between materials taken by attendees and materials dropped off with Film Biz Recycling after Load OUT!) resulting in a grand total of 5500 pounds diverted. Since the program began, nearly 46 tons have been diverted from the waste stream.

Load OUT! is a part of FABnyc's comprehensive sustainability and resource sharing programs that explore creative solutions to the complex challenge of urban and artistic sustainability. FABnyc's SUSTAIN program (https://fabnyc.org/sustainability.php) and other resource sharing initiatives have received funding from the Rockefeller Foundation Cultural Innovation Fund and the National Endowment for the Arts. FABnyc is grateful to Downtown Art and Alpha Omega Theatrical Dance Company for their ongoing, in-kind donation of space for this event.