Algae Reliquary

Created by José Carlos Espinel, 3D printed sculpture 23″ x 10″

3D printed sculpture.

Reliquary: a container or shrine in which sacred relics are kept.

Present, past and future?

This video triptych represents different stages of life on the earth. The Present is represented by a human skull, made out of bones. Past is represented by diatoms drifting in the water. With warm temperatures rising, and the poles melting, humankind could be forced to evolve and adapt to marine life. In this case, the future shows a scenario where we can see a human skull made out of Coccoliths, individual plates of calcium carbonate. If we live in a good and healthy environment, these plates would be strong and complete, which means that this new human species would have a strong skeleton. But, if ocean acidification changes the composition of water in the oceans, this would result in a more acidic water, and weaker coccoliths, which will make our skeleton become weaker.  Created by José Carlos Espinel