BODIES OF EARTH: Abduction - Death - Grief - Rebirth

Abstract

In the Acropolis, the past and the future converge. The marble that produced the citadel monuments altered our future and drained the mountain stone. Here, our cultural artifacts are evidence of our destructive relations with the Earth.

Life starts and ends in the soil that gives birth to all sorts of bodies. In today's complex world bodies blur with other bodies, machines, and networks.

The Bodies of Earth is a catalog, a collection of snapshots, recent memories of cultural and visual consumption of artworks and design projects that are placed together to help us re-examine our relationships with plants, animals, and machines. It aims to explore the body's agency in establishing a partnership with Earth in the era of climate destruction and recognizing that our kinship with the soil is intrinsic to establishing an ethics of eco-responsibility.

How can a shift in human consciousness lead to a collective restoration of the environment? Right now, humans dominate the planet without responsibility. Carbon dioxide emissions, global warming, and over-extraction of natural resources are only some evidence of the problems they cause.

The structure of this catalog deploys Greek mythology to talk about the circle of life and death. The first chapter, “Abduction”, investigates the body under surveillance and extraction mechanisms. The second chapter, “Death”, explores the material and the digital transformations of a dead body. The third chapter, “Grief”, talks about the shifting landscapes of ecological destruction and memories from the past. The last chapter, “Rebirth”, presents a post-anthropocentric ethical thinking and provides design alternatives for a regenerative future.