Mineral Lick, 2019
Commissioned by Ashkal Alwan for Homeworks 8 Beirut, Lebanon.
This work explores the distribution of water within the city of Beirut. The piece acts as a hydromap for all the toxic water sources expelled through our taps as divided by the municipal map. As the most water rich nation in the region, food water after rains constantly seeps through our failing infrastructure and out through our taps, resulting in water that ranges in toxicity levels depending on which sector of the map they are in. This work was produced using tap water from all 60 sectors of Beirut’s neighbourhoods. Each gallon of flood water from the designated sector was mixed with equal parts dye and rock salt before the fabric was introduced. Each piece of fabric grew salt according to the acidity levels of the water used, some parts contained much more, and others much less.
The work accompanies a long list of government loans taken out to repair the system that have yet to start groundworks to this date. The work was displayed for only one evening as the October revolution boiled onto the streets.