INTRA call 2020
Greenwashed Concrete.
Artistic Practice with, about and against Concrete Concerning Conflicting Concepts of its Sustainability
Contact:
Christoph Weber, Nikolaus Eckhard
What can we learn about concrete and its position within
the Anthropocene if we let artistic research direct clashes between conflicting definitions of its sustainability?
Concrete
is often advertised as sustainable, natural and regional––hence green material. Environmental science however shows that especially
its abundant production is leading to significant challenges for generations to come. While the building industry labels concrete
as “sustainable” due to its long-life cycle, and the cement industry strives to reduce its carbon footprint, scientists identified
it as a defining material of the Anthropocene––it will leave lasting marks in the geology of our planet. Additionally, the
way we use concrete is causing grave environmental problems such as the sealing of soils, freshwater and sand consumption,
high CO
2 emissions (8% of the annual global amount), toxic dust, overheated cities, the creation of massive horizontal
and vertical barriers and the reduction of biodiversity.
Greenwashed Concrete is an artistic research
project with, about and against concrete. It strives to critically document concrete’s role in the climate- and biodiversity
crisis. By developing interdisciplinary, collaborative research methods that connect art practice, environmental science,
architecture, posthumanist- and new materialist philosophy, the project aims to radically rethink the use of concrete: how
can we change its overwhelming importance within the technosphere and what could it mean to strive for a truly sustainable
handling of it in the future, given the fact that it is not composed of renewable resources?
The main contributors
are the artists Christoph Weber and Nikolaus Eckhard. They team up with experts from related fields such as sustainability
(Fridolin Krausmann), anthropocene (Jan Zalasiewicz), art history, interdisciplinarity and politics of materiality (Susanne
Witzgall).
First findings of the project will be displayed at the Vienna Biennale for Change in May 2021 in the CLIMATE
CARE exhibition at MAK.
Limestone (Cumulative Weight), 2021
Quarry of Lafarge Cement Mannersdorf
Photo: Eckhard/Weber