My contribution to this workshop is a focus on planetary geology as more-than-human archives, inspired by the works of American artist Robert Smithson and Australian artist Bianca Hester. Both artists engage in speculative art practices that build new archival forms from geological matter.
Contribution long abstract
My research centres on the role of contemporary art in understanding the more-than-human geological world. In examining the geology of the planet itself as an archive — one that stores and stories the narrative of the Anthropocene — I propose a speculative art historical approach to the question of the more-than-human archive. As part of the workshop I offer a contribution that focuses on geology as a more-than-human archive inspired by the works of American artist Robert Smithson and Australian artist Bianca Hester. Both artists engage in speculative art practices that build new archival forms from geological matter and unsettle previous relationships with the environment. My approach employs environmental art histories to unpack critical artworks within the context of the more-than-human.