2017
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Site-responsive performance in which I stood on top of a calcareous formation, while breathing and trying to receive on top of my head the dripping water rich in calcium carbonate —a mineral present in our bones—, that gives shape to this geological configuration.
When rainwater is charged by carbon dioxide it becomes acidic and penetrates into the soil, dissolving calcareous rock into soluble bicarbonate. Upon re-emergence, waters degas the CO2 and the calcite precipitates to form rock once again, closing the cycle. In a similar way, the water dripping from the cavity’s top marked my breathing rhythm throughout the entire performance, and thus my respiration input into the atmosphere, which added to water dissolves the rock, to mineralize once again on my hair and skin.
The work is documented through a series of two photographs with engraved glass. The first photograph records connections between body, atmosphere and geosphere and is presented in juxtaposition with a second one -a pyramid of stone that portrays the Scala Naturae; an anthropocentric arrangement of natural beings, made by Aristotle almost 2500 years ago. This hierarchical arrangement situates mankind above all other creatures, and geology at the very bottom of material perfection.
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Photography and documentation by Carlota Antón and Miguel Sbastida.
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