TANK WORLDS

Robin Papp

Tank Worlds : Miniaturising the Gigantic
Temporalities of Hemp-Lime


Through this course, I explore the temporal dynamics of hemp-lime building materials. These ephemeral durations range in scale from lifespan, seasonal, day to night, and hours to minutes. I start by placing my hemp-lime models into the setting of the Canadian climate to analyze the phenomena of yearly rising temperatures due to increasing atmospheric CO2. As I miniaturize the invisible gas, I represent its impact through the thawing rate of ice supplemented by increasing amounts of water. During this study, I also attune myself to the resilience of hemp-lime to varying seasonal cycles and to the end phase of material breakdown. Seeing the settling of lime and hemp lightly floating to the surface, I ask what influence these materials have on our water and soil. I then record this decomposition stage as it neutralizes acidic earth and provides nutrients. Lastly, I move my focus to interior environments and study hemp-lime’s daily oscillations of moisture.

Post thaw - studying material Integrity

Surface lime setting and mixing into water

Various moisture accumulation on faces of tank (from fogged, misted, to droplets)

Condensation influenced by daily temperature oscillations