Grey Gold, Black Lakes, White Latex

2022

Group show RIXC Art and Science Festival 2022 Splintered Realities. KIM? Contemporary Art Centre, Riga, Latvia

Curators: Rasa Šmite, Raitis Šmits

3 prints (digital drawing, paper, 50x70 cm)

There are seventeen rare-earth elements in the periodic table. They are metallic minerals that can be found in the Earth’s crust and are widely used in the manufacturing of various technologies, for example, computers, phones, hybrid cars, internet cables, etc. In his book A Geology of Media, new media theorist Jussi Parikka suggests to think of technologies as extensions of Earth. Everyone who uses technology also uses minerals – they provide communication, cloud accounts, movement, and progress towards more nature-friendly industries (and they are the reason why this artwork exists). The extraction of rare-earth minerals for manufacturing the technologies is an infrastructure which transforms the Earth, shapes the economy, changes lifestyles, and exploits resources.