The Art of Corrugated
In as much as Royal Containers has established itself as a family of companies through its partnerships with Tencorr and Greenpac, we also consider ourselves to be a company of families. We live this daily through the commitment to the empowerment of our employees, their coaching and development within the workplace and also the financial support of their athletic careers outside of the plant, often on the world stage. Many of Royal’s employees are pursuing their passion in sport and work in the plant to augment the funding for their training and travel.
Royal Containers is known for the production of natural, versatile, environmentally-friendly corrugated fiberboard for packaging, but we also know that its unique properties lend a unique character to products normally made of plastic, steel and wood and on occasion, fine art like that produced by artist and Royal Containers family member, Peggy Taylor Reid.
The mother of one of Royal Containers sponsored competitive athletes, Taylor Reid, Peggy takes corrugated packaging and transforms it into a thought-provoking statement on our culture of disposable products. Her work is inspired by ideas and she considers herself to be influenced by conceptualism, with an underlying interest in formalism. While collapsing boxes for trash and recycling, she became interested in their physical forms and the ingenuity of their construction. A practising artist since graduating from Ottawa University in 1984, Peggy saw the formalist-like structure in the containers while the stains and torn edges provided traces of their original function.
“This led me to collect a number of boxes before deciding to photograph them. In 2014 an opportunity came up. A collective of artists I was working with was sending a themed show to Chicago. The theme for this show was box. This led me to look more earnestly at my collection and pursue them photographically. During the 3 years I worked with the boxes it evolved into the collection I call form follows (dis)function.”
The collection has become a reflection on the social and political implications of the objects themselves and speaks to Peggy’s concern with present-day food and waste economies. However, the work goes beyond pure formalism integrating elements of humour and irony. “In using the corrugated as the subject, I was able to create a hook because of their interesting shapes, which brings the viewer in closer to examine my idea(s). If I had to pick (a favourite) it would be Take Out because of the shape and its reference to a human form, yet also Aztec in design. I also love that the food from the container has stained the surface of the interior and leaves a mark. I like these traces of wear and tear as a reminder of their destination.”
Choosing the boxes as her subject has added relevance for Peggy as both of her Grandfathers worked in the pulp and paper industry. One worked as a paper maker in Cornwall, Ontario and the other opened up the International Paper office in Trois Rivieres PQ in the late 1920’s. “I was exposed to this industry from an early age, so it felt natural for me to use a paper product as the subject.” says Peggy.
We also think it makes for a lovely tribute to family.
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