Petrified Media

Inspired by the Anthropocene, media artist Stephen Cornford speculates on the deep future of electronic waste as it sediments into Earth’s stratigraphic record. By applying geological techniques to a hypothetical “technofossil”, he seeks to materialise an inevitable scenario where discarded technologies become part of the planet’s geology. Colourful microscope imagery combines with analyses of elementary composition and details on the origin of the indispensable metals used in the production of today’s technological devices. Essays by Siobhan Angus, Jan Zalasiewicz, and Cornford himself reflect on the topic from the authors’ respective theoretical backgrounds.