Otto KolleßPortfolio

Peak Sand is the theorized point in time when the maximum rate of exploitation of sand is reached, after which it is expected to enter terminal decline. Sand is a crucial component of concrete, a material dependency which is increasing every year. As only a specific kind of sand grain can be used, it has initiated a system of exploitation in third world countries where a niche for illegal extraction methods has been devised. The ongoing project Peak Sand consists of a computer rendering that shows a glass vessel open at the top with an engraving on the inside that reads “We need to stop taking sand for granted and think of it as an endangered natural resource”. The glass vessel functions as a cast, created as a proposal for a collaboration with the company bioMASON that has developed a microorganism to grow biocement. By giving the microorganism a cast to grow a future monument is created. Once grown to completion, the concrete resembles a stone table of the past. The engraved lettering is raised in the concrete, making the statement set in a time lasting material transitioning fully from a conceptual computer animation to a physical object. The future monument Peak Sand is the first in a series of works with similar compositions. Applying both a familiar architectural design language and materiality as well as a cultural understanding of the function of stone tables. The future monument Peak Sand is a comment and critique of capitalist structures that disregards fair mining methods that are safe for human kind and the environment.