flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Decaying city: Exhibit demonstrates the fragility of the man-made world

Decaying city: Exhibit demonstrates the fragility of the man-made world

Theater set designer Johanna Mårtensson built a model cityscape out of bread only to watch it decay.


By BD+C Staff | April 26, 2013
Photos by Johanna Mrtensson http://johannamartensson.se/

The Architizer blog (via Fast Company) brings us a fascinating exhibit by theater set designer Johanna Mårtensson. To demonstrate the fragility of the man-made world, she constructed a city out of bread and then snapped a photo every day for six months to document the decay (warning: if you haven't eaten breakfast yet you may want to skip the last two photos).

For her efforts, Mårtensson recently won a Platinum A' Design Award. In her submission, she described her inspiration for the project:

"I was inspired by an article about how well the earth would do without us. Within 500 years all buildings would be half-fallen or fallen, perfect homes for animals and plants. The forrest would soon grow in cities. Buildings as well as pollutions would be taken care of by bacterias and micro-organisms. If a UFO came here in a couple of hundred thousand years, they would not see many signs of that gang of primates that once thought they were the lords of the planet."

Check out Mårtensson's decaying city:

Related Stories

| Jun 5, 2012

Glumac hires Drit Shoemaker as new director of business development

Shoemaker will research, connect, and forge new client relationships with architects, developers, owners and brokers while strengthening relationships with current clients.

| Jun 5, 2012

Hoffman Architects Arbuckle elected president of New York/Tri-State DOCOMOMO

As chapter president, Arbuckle will guide and oversee the organization's efforts on behalf of Modern buildings and sites, and he will act as the main spokesperson for the organization. 

| Jun 4, 2012

Brownfield goes green

Chicago Center for Green Technology uses high-speed, energy-efficient hand dryers to share its green message and earn LEED credits.

| Jun 4, 2012

KBE Building and CTA Construction awarded Project of the Year from CMAA

Award given for work done on the renovation of Beverly High School in Beverly, Mass.

| Jun 4, 2012

Pressley promoted to Senior VP and CIO at Hill International

Pressley will be responsible for managing all of Hill's information technology systems and software worldwide.

| Jun 4, 2012

Stalco Construction promotes Scott Pavick to chief estimator

Pavick manages the estimating department and is responsible for developing cost estimates and budgets, value engineering, and subcontractor bid evaluation and negotiations.

| Jun 4, 2012

HBD Construction to build new training campus in St. Louis

Larger campus facility will expand training opportunities for plumbers and pipefitters.

| Jun 1, 2012

New BD+C University Course on Insulated Metal Panels available

By completing this course, you earn 1.0 HSW/SD AIA Learning Units.

| Jun 1, 2012

Caruso to lead Gensler’s Asia talent development

Caruso will be based in Shanghai and working with the Gensler offices in Japan, China, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, and India until the spring of 2013.

| Jun 1, 2012

AIA 2030 Commitment Program reports new results

The full report contains participating firm demographics, energy reduction initiatives undertaken by firms, anecdotal accounts, and lessons learned.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category




Great Solutions

41 Great Solutions for architects, engineers, and contractors

AI ChatBots, ambient computing, floating MRIs, low-carbon cement, sunshine on demand, next-generation top-down construction. These and 35 other innovations make up our 2024 Great Solutions Report, which highlights fresh ideas and innovations from leading architecture, engineering, and construction firms.

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021