The works of Beijing-based designer Wei Minghui on display at the Landscape of the Spirit: Chinese Design 2011 exhibition, stand in contrast to other avant-garde and futuristic art pieces.

From handbags and suitcases to file holders and wallets, Wei's creations are practical and colorful, and made from advertisement waste paper and scraps of fabric.

"I was struck by those nice advertisements for things like clothes, cosmetics and electronic products, which became redundant once the promotions end," 32-year-old Wei says. "The fabrics, too, were too good to throw away. All they needed was a good makeover."

The Heilongjiang native studied interior design at the Academy of Art and Design of Tshinghua University in 1999. Wei founded his own design workshop in 2009 and called his products Memory, or Nei Cun.

He later expanded the materials he used to paper boxes and bulletins and now has shops in Sanlitun Village, 798 art district and along Dongsi Dajie, a popular commercial street in Dongcheng district.

More Chinese designers are taking to eco-friendly design and this was evident at Landscape of the Spirit.

Designer Sun Wentao's series, Future Sofa, for example, is made from second-hand leather jackets.

"Leather jackets, like other fashions, can become outdated, " Sun says. "I wanted to prolong their value and so decided to put them to everyday use."

The world is becoming more aware that over-consumption is proving a grave threat, he says.

Designer Zhang Lei, who is displaying his Paper Chair series at the exhibition, also says: "Eco-friendly and sustainable materials are the trend of the future, but before we start thinking of new materials, we should first look to consume every bit of what we have."