A travel guide to the environmental apocalypse.
Signing off today with our final gallery feature: Sounding the Anthropocene, a curated playlist & accompanying essay about the emerging online world of sonic ecology by Max Levin. Sounds by @johanndiedrick #radioaporee @petri_kuljuntausta & @davidkamp Full article at: https://www.silicamag.com/gallery/sounding-the-anthropocene/
Where Does the Dirt Go? On our last day of programming, we’d like to highlight Ashira Morris’ latest commentary, which explores the soil-rich history of Boston’s #spectacleisland. It’s a fascinating story of remediation, one that feels like a sunny Sunday. Ashira is also hosting dirt yoga for us today at 11am. Come meet the author if you’d like! Zoom link in bio. Article link here: https://www.silicamag.com/commentary/where-does-the-dirt-go/
Our final piece of programming this week is Dirt Yoga this Sunday at 11am with commentary contributor Ashira Morris. Join us on Zoom & Facebook Live, or save for later when you need a moment to pause, reground, and breathe... As the news and protests continue to unfold, we also ask that all attendees to our virtual launch or yoga session donate what they can to one of the organizations we’re sharing in the swipe. See you in a bit...
Today’s artist spotlight goes to renowned pixel artist @8pxl_ who created a series of epic imaginary off-world landscapes for our latest feature. See (& commission) more of her work at https://8pxl.co/
Today, we’re in space. As @nasa & @spacex prepare for liftoff, earth spins in chaos. Journalist Dyllan Furness explores the potential of extraterrestrial soils to build our first off-world colonies, pondering the imagination, engineering, and challenges we face in ‘settling’ the final frontier. Read it and it’s companion piece (@shannpo’s On Russian Terraforming) as you watch liftoff... Art by @8pxl_ Read it now on @engadget https://www.engadget.com/regolith-cities-141549899.html
Tonight, senior producer Shannon Lee reads an excerpt of her latest feature, the race to reshape our planet’s future. Read it at: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.engadget.com/amp/terraforming-earth-strelka-institute-141557256.html
Sporco e Spbagliato, Muddy Feet, Dirt Crackers. Our menu for the Dirt Issue launch party (tomorrow on zoom 7-9pm) is full of earthy, exotic flavors. Much of it can be made from forage, discard, or what you have lying around at home. That said, you May want to feed your starter & head to the liquor store this evening. Link in bio for a full rundown of ingredients, links, and lineups to get you prepped. Recipes and photos provided lovingly by @lalph_rauren @buck_eats_ and @stewart.stout
Our commentary highlight today addresses a different kind of terraforming: one that’s already rampant across much of America. And while you may have already read about Kudzu before, we promise you @lynskoang’s article addresses it from an incredibly nuanced, earthy angle. Read it now at: https://www.silicamag.com/commentary/kudzu/
Today’s artist spotlight is #denniswitkin a Queens, NY based contemporary artist & co-Director of @kimberlyklarkforever. Working closely with writer @shannpo, the artist created a series of illustrations envisioning the creation of new terraformed realities in a classic, analog zine aesthetic.
Today’s feature, by senior producer @shannpo is a riveting exploration into the science and philosophy of terraforming. Focusing on two competing schools of thought — one Russian, one American — it discusses the complex ethics of terrestrial rehabilitation... and the new “space race” to terraform our own imaginations of the future. Read it now on https://www.engadget.com/terraforming-earth-strelka-institute-141557256.html
Take a peek inside silicamag.com with this dramatic reading of our CSS code by CD @smallweasel. You might even catch a peek at some of our upcoming features 💦
Way up, up, up in the far North there’s a place where the Trumps and Guggenheims made their fortunes...Today’s gallery feature ‘NO UNESCO’ showcases @christopherjhealey’s haunting photography of the contemporary Klondike and the emerging #noUNESCO movement that’s gaining ground among local miners. An accompanying essay shares the complicated history of the gold-rush icon and the colonial horror show of crime, disease, racism, and destruction that came with it. Read it now on silicamag.com/gallery/no-UNESCO
A closer look at @rjstrother’s eerie, on-location photography from today’s feature. In it, he examines the devastating effects of permafrost slump, where warming temperatures and coastal erosion exposes and melts ancient ice, as land falls into the sea...
We’re headed North today, starting with Ryan Strother’s Permafrost Sump, an on-the-ground report from Tuktoyaktuk, an Inuvialuit hamlet in Canada’s Northwest Territories. The settlement, where the sun will burn 24/7 through July 25th, lies North of the Arctic Circle on the shores of the Arctic Ocean, where the effects of climate change are rapidly displacing land and communities. Art by @ricksilva.jpg
Halfway through launch week 🐌Tomorrow, we begin looking toward the future with three more longform features examining the wonders of soil from unexpected angles. More gallery, commentary + sound content is also coming! As always, check here for updates on the daily meta narrative, nightly readings, and other fun virtual DIRT programming. We’re also throwing a zoom launch party on Saturday 7-9 EST. See you there?
Inside Indonesia’s Fight to Save It’s Most Important Soil. Tonight, journalist Nithin Coca reads a condensed version of his latest feature for @silicamag + @engadget. Full article at https://www.engadget.com/indonesia-peat-conservation-141504125.html
When looking out at the landscape of Hainaut, straddling the border of France and Belgium, one can observe an undulating skyline. Though this may seem like the effect of an ordinary European hillside, this sloping horizon is entirely man-made.... Today’s commentary feature by @marion_henry_henry & Brunella Danna Allegrini is all about Slag Heaps & the importance of protecting the ecology of what we once deemed waste. Translated from French, it is a beautiful ode to post-industrial nature and the imagination it takes to transform lost territory. Read it now at silicamag.com/commentary/slag-heaps
Artist Spotlight: a closer look at the art @m0henjodaro created for our latest feature. Somnath Bhatt is a designer and artist who focuses on multimedia, technology, multilingual typography and traditional crafts — seeking new in old and old in new.
Our next feature is now LIVE on @engadget. Today, we head to Indonesia, where journalist Nithin Coca explores the nation’s ongoing efforts to save some of the world’s most important soil — PEAT. Art by Somnath Bhatt (@m0henjodaro)
Join longtime Silica contributor @joesutton100 for a reading of his latest commentary piece, a prolific ode to the trials and contemplation of beetle rearing. Read the full article at https://www.silicamag.com/commentary/metamorphosis-in-miniature/
Ever wondered what it’s like to raise an exotic beetle? @joesutton100’s latest commentary piece explores the materials, philosophy, and patience required to raise these earthen entities — learning something about humanity along the way. Read the full piece at https://www.silicamag.com/commentary/metamorphosis-in-miniature/ or see him read the piece tonight on our IGTV at 8pm!
🚨Hot off the Silica Soundcloud 🚨 Potting Mix, @siii_siii’s immersive, undulating & highly danceable ode to the earth. The Brooklyn-based DJ will be premiering the mix LIVE this Saturday at the Silica launch party. Until then, sneak a pre-listen in at https://www.silicamag.com/mixes/dirt-mix/
Today’s Feature Illustrations were created by @liliemtiaz, inspired by hundreds of image pulls from the Quanta site’s official Superfund remediation site. A tryptic of stylized, diorama-style blocks tell the story, present and future of creating a post-industrial Stonehenge, where waste becomes monument. Swipe through for a quick peek behind the scenes...
Our second longform feature is now up on @Engadget, penned by prolific environmental journalist James Dinneen. In the piece, he visits the Quanta Superfund site in Edgewater, New Jersey — home to some of the dirtiest dirt in the country, exploring the dark history and potential future of our post-industrial past. What will it take to clean up decades of toxic decay? What will we leave behind? Read the full piece at: https://www.engadget.com/toxic-coast-141522059.html
Today, let’s talk urbanism and terrestrial decay, beginning with @elisabethnicula’s “Under the Road: Let’s Stop Farming Pavement and Let Other Things Grow” Now live on Gallery: silicamag.com/gallery/pavement
Join editor-in-chief @ivystive for an excerpted reading of her latest for The Dirt Issue. Read the full article at https://www.engadget.com/how-to-reverse-engineer-a-rainforest-141513396.html
Did we mention we’re throwing a launch party? Posting this early, so we can all scavenge our ingredients! Join us May 30, 7-9pm on zoom for an evening of special dirt snacks, cocktails, & content. Special thanks to @lalph_rauren @buck_eats_ & @stewart.stout for going above and beyond on their specialty menu. For more info, visit: https://www.silicamag.com/dispatch/dirt-issue-launch-party-1/
Kicking off our gallery promos is @angelinadreem’s Soil Structure: Interpreting soils by their intrinsic property, behavior, or genesis for diverse uses. It’s a great place to start as you’re familiarizing yourself with the different soil types we’ll visit throughout the issue—from sand to peat. https://www.silicamag.com/gallery/soil-structure/
A closer look at the art @mrkdrf created for today’s feature. Mark is a NY-based artist who’s practice utilizes photography, digital media, and sculpture in incredible, unexpected ways. His most recent work is influenced by human’s perceptions of and interactions with digital domains, urbanism, design, and what we once called “Nature.” Rather than seeing these subjects as categorically different, Dorf looks to reveal the entanglement of these spaces, shedding light on their deep interaction and do-production of one another. We’re so excited to have him with us this year 🌍🌱🐌
Silica Magazine's cover photo
Silica Magazine
Our first feature is by editor-in-chief @ivystive, exploring the science, technology, and politics behind replanting one of the natural world’s greatest ecological wonders. Like all stories this issue, it begins and ends.... in soil. Art by the incredible @mrkdrf. Now live on engadget.com/how-to-reverse-engineer-a-rainforest-141513396.html
It’s official. We’ve got 9 new articles live on silicamag.com/issues/dirt. Our first feature drops on Engadget at 10:15am
& it begins... Edit Letter, now live at silicamag.com/letters/dirt-letter
The plan: Starting tomorrow, we’re launching one exclusive feature a day on @engadget + a curated cache of accompanying gallery & commentary content on silicamag.com to keep you busy while you wait. Our new issue landing page drops tomorrow at 8am! Here’s a sneak peek from staging...
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Tonight, senior producer Shannon Lee reads an excerpt of her latest feature, the race to reshape our planet’s future. Read it at: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.engadget.com/amp/terraforming-earth-strelka-institute-141557256.html
Take a peek inside silicamag.com with this dramatic reading of our CSS code by CD @smallweasel. You might even catch a peek at some of our upcoming features 💦
Inside Indonesia’s Fight to Save It’s Most Important Soil. Tonight, journalist Nithin Coca reads a condensed version of his latest feature for @silicamag + @engadget. Full article at https://www.engadget.com/indonesia-peat-conservation-141504125.html
Join longtime Silica contributor @joesutton100 for a reading of his latest commentary piece, a prolific ode to the trials and contemplation of beetle rearing. Read the full article at https://www.silicamag.com/commentary/metamorphosis-in-miniature/
Today, let’s talk urbanism and terrestrial decay, beginning with @elisabethnicula’s “Under the Road: Let’s Stop Farming Pavement and Let Other Things Grow” Now live on Gallery: silicamag.com/gallery/pavement
Join editor-in-chief @ivystive for an excerpted reading of her latest for The Dirt Issue. Read the full article at https://www.engadget.com/how-to-reverse-engineer-a-rainforest-141513396.html
The plan: Starting tomorrow, we’re launching one exclusive feature a day on @engadget + a curated cache of accompanying gallery & commentary content on silicamag.com to keep you busy while you wait. Our new issue landing page drops tomorrow at 8am! Here’s a sneak peek from staging...
💦Site walk-through 💦New features on the Silica Mag website include a dispatch ticker, glass pane nav overlay, custom CMS, and more! Lots of treats for those who code, if you’d like to take a page source peek behind the curtain. DM us if you find any bugs!!!!
Announcing The Critter Issue — rolling out online May 21st to 25th. Meet the creatures of the digital age.
Big news! Silica is partnering with Engadget for our next issue: CRITTERS. Call for Submissions are now open. Send us pitches for articles, interactives, illustrations, animations, VR experiences, sound experiments and more. Details here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PNPqcDg8BdRVxF4OkJrz5oONxDCX1gQ1/view
Caught up with Silica contributor Alex Kwok last night to talk about his practice and upcoming plans for Land's End. If you haven't already, check out our latest gallery feature of his surprising landscape work here: http://silicamag.com/gallery/lands-end
We have a few more print issues left at the Silica HQ! Visit http://silicamag.bigcartel.com/ to snag a copy.
Let's talk 🗻 GEOGRAPHY 🗻 http://kck.st/2jRkXig
We are excited to premiere 'NOBODIES', a film by Dan Regan, part of Silica Mag No. 1: The Lake Issue, this Thursday! Come get into a Salton Sea mood on with us here https://www.facebook.com/events/1690589151166018/
