Ekco radio, 1950s. Courtesy the Science Museum, London
Polythene carrier bags, nylon stockings, brightly coloured toys and Formica table-tops - the everyday items of the last 100 years looked very different from those that went before thanks to a revolutionary invention spurred by the rising cost of a material derived from beetle secretions.
The first true synthetic material was invented by Leo Baekeland in 1907 and the Science Museum in London is celebrating the centenary with a free exhibition. Entitled Plasticity, it will run until January 2009, telling the story of the invention of Bakelite and tracing the how the different plastics that followed changed the world.
The major show takes in not just the history, but the future of our love affair with polymer-based materials, from current environmental issues to incredible things like biodegradable cars.
Toyota i-unit © Toyota Motor Corporation
Now back to that invention… Chemist Leo Baekeland was not only a talented scientist, but also rather savvy when it came to spotting gaps in the market. He made a fortune in 1899 from selling the formula for a new kind of photographic paper to George Eastman of the soon-to-be Kodak empire. Then, in a barn laboratory set up with the proceeds, he set to work on creating a new kind of electrical insulator.
Baekeland settled on this goal due to the rising price of the material shellac that was being used for the purpose at the time. Made from the resinous secretions of the Asian lac beetle, its production was a cottage industry in southern Asia, but demand soon outstripped supply as electrification grew in the first years of the 1900s.
Michelin man ashtray, Bakelite. Courtesy the Science Museum, London
He came up with the marvellously named bakelizer machine in which he cooked up phenol (derived from coal tar) and formaldehyde, and patented the resulting material just 24 hours before the British scientist Sir James Swinburne, who had also discovered the formula.
The Museum exhibition looks at the two scientists’ simultaneous work, and presents an array of Bakelite products from its collection – classic telephones, jewellery and ashtrays were all made from this tough stuff in addition to its electrical applications. Other pieces on show from the golden age of early thermosetting plastics include Ekco radios, Art Deco mantle clocks and engraved cigarette boxes.
Plastic reached a fashionable peak in the 1960s – remember the opening scene of the Graduate where an ill at ease young Dustin Hoffman is given that charming piece of advice by a family friend? (“I just want to say one word to you. Just one word: plastics.”)
Tupperware Party, 1963. Courtesy the Science Museum, London
The exhibition has some great plastic wares from this defining era – a PVC mac and definitely kinky boots, and the Finnish Futuro House, which was inspired by the Apollo space mission craft.
With the ubiquitous supermarket carrier bag adorning tree branches and swathing landfill sites up and down the UK, the honeymoon period, however, is over. What we need are sustainable plastics. A focus of the exhibition, therefore, is innovative developments such as recyclable, biodegradable and plant-based plastics. Check out the ergonomically designed, recycled materials Herman Miller office chair (itself 96 per cent recyclable) and Toyota’s futuristic i-unit vehicle – seen for the first time in Britain.
There’s even an interesting side to mundane items – the exhibition reveals how the humble plastic bucket is used to revolutionary effect in the developing world. And Tupperware… Well, how many other plastic artefacts are honoured with parties in their name?
Nylon stockings. Courtesy the Science Museum, London
The weird and wonderful are also on show – a working chandelier of Bic biros, plastic blood (?!) and an extremely rare Bakelite coffin!
Here’s a tip, though – take a good look at the plastic model-producing printer and the aeroplane that changes shape on the wing to optimise flight at different speeds. I’m not Maggie Philbin, but I say, in a few years, you’ll be asking how we ever lived without them.
Plasticity has been supported by SITA Trust and Defra, and is part of the project Wasted Opportunity? Find out more about the associated programme of adult debating events and educational activities on the Science Museum’s accompanying mini-site.
