Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) has long been a staple in construction, packaging, and insulation, but its potential for reinvention goes far beyond its conventional uses. At Foamex, we champion sustainability and circularity, ensuring that EPS continues its lifecycle well beyond its first use. That’s why we were proud to support Diego Super Bonza Store, an immersive and interactive exhibition by renowned French designer and artist Diego Faivre, in collaboration with Melbourne artist David Wadelton, hosted by Useful Objects.
The Ultimate Upcycling: Foamex Supports Diego Faivre’s Playful Transformation of Polystyrene
A Space for Innovation: Useful Objects
Useful Objects is no ordinary gallery. Specialising in collectible design, it provides a platform for designers and makers who push the boundaries of function and material, creating objects that tell the compelling stories of our time. Addressing a gap in Australia’s design scene, Useful Objects operates as a co-op gallery, fostering deeper opportunities for designer-makers to create and present their work to an engaged audience.
The space attracts collectors, creative leaders, and cultural institutions looking for objects that challenge expectations and contribute to the evolving history of art and design in Australia. Through exhibitions, promotion, and representation, Useful Objects offers the public a rare opportunity to engage directly with cutting-edge design practices, making it the perfect setting for Diego Faivre’s bold, unconventional approach to upcycling.
Diego Faivre: Playful Upcycling in Action
For his first Australian solo exhibition, Diego Faivre transformed the gallery into a performative studio, retail environment, and interactive workshop, crafting an entirely new collection of handmade, collectible furniture and homewares. Using his signature Minute Manufacturing technique—a rapid, improvisational process shaped by time constraints—Diego created pieces in full view of the public, inviting audiences to experience design as an expressive, human-centered act.
Beyond just watching, visitors were encouraged to participate in the creative process, taking part in three open workshops where they could craft their own sculptures or objects alongside Diego. These community-made pieces became part of the exhibition itself, reinforcing the idea that upcycling is not just an environmental practice, but an artistic one as well.
Polystyrene as a Material for Creative Upcycling
At Foamex, we remain committed to circular solutions for expanded polystyrene. Through our recycling programs and sustainable product innovations, we ensure that EPS avoids landfill and instead finds new life in meaningful applications—whether in construction, insulation, or, in this case, art and design.
The Diego Super Bonza Store exhibition perfectly embodied this vision. It demonstrated that EPS is not just a material of function but also of expression. Diego’s approach to upcycling—rapid, resourceful, and playful—showcased the potential of reused materials in contemporary design, challenging traditional notions of waste and sustainability.
A Celebration of Design, Sustainability, and Community
Over two phases, the exhibition brought together Diego’s vibrant, hand-moulded creations and a photographic series by David Wadelton, documenting Melbourne’s disappearing suburban milk bars.
With Useful Objects providing the perfect backdrop for pushing the boundaries of material and function, and Foamex supporting the innovative reuse of EPS, this exhibition highlighted how design, sustainability, and community can come together in unexpected ways.
Take Home a Piece of the Exhibition
While the Diego Super Bonza Store exhibition may have wrapped up, the conversation around upcycling and sustainable design continues. Many of the one-of-a-kind furniture pieces and objects crafted during the exhibition are now available for purchase through the Useful Objects Store.
If you’re looking for a truly unique, handcrafted piece that embodies bold design, sustainability, and the spirit of playful upcycling, explore the Useful Objects Store and bring home a part of this unforgettable exhibition.
Visit the Useful Objects Store to browse and shop the collection.
At Foamex, we’re proud to support initiatives that transform materials, inspire creativity, and drive sustainability forward. Diego Faivre’s work is a testament to what’s possible when we rethink waste—and Useful Objects is the space where these ideas come to life.