Projects → Plastiglomerates

Plastiglomerates

2019 -

‘Uncanny markers’ of human environmental impact found on Shetland’s beaches

‘Plastiglomerates’ are evidence of coastal change. A proposed new kind of ‘human-made’ rock, plastiglomerate consists of a mix of melted plastic debris and natural sediment, and samples have been found on shorelines across the world. These uncannily organic forms are however but a visible part of a terrifying ocean plastic pollution problem. As well as huge amounts of visible floating litter, our open seas contain unknown amounts of microplastics below the surface, which are now entering the food chain.

Invented at the start of the 20th century, plastic was seen as a utopian material, endlessly malleable, convenient, hygienic – and so suitable for an ideal modern world. Increased post-war consumerism, overproduction and exploitation of nature has however led to unprecedented plastic pollution. The detritus of urban-utopia now clogs our most remote coasts. We know that plastic waste, including plastiglomerates, will last for thousands of years, and some argue that they will form ‘markers’ in the earths geology, future indicators of the start of the ‘Anthropocene’.*

By making studies of plastiglomerates collected in Shetland I hope to make these objects of coastal waste more visible. Drawing these plastic forms almost as though they are geological specimens allows me to trace their strange lines and shapes in detail, lines which reveal how natural processes now mix with human actions in a world which is becoming more materially entropic.

*From Robertson, Kirsty. 2016. ‘Plastiglomerate’. E-Flux. Available at: https://www.e-flux.com/journal/78/82878/plastiglomerate/