“I have a clear and distinct idea of myself as a thinking, non-extended thing, and a clear and distinct idea of body as an extended and non-thinking thing. Whatever I can conceive clearly and distinctly, God can so create.”  Those were the words of the philosopher Rene Descartes. With his theories he put in place the idea of mind and body dualism, which many believe has transcended into the scientific thought doctrine and contributed in creating a binary between man and nature as separate, and sometimes opposing, entities. Is man not a part of nature? And everything that he does, therefore natural? 

This project started with exploring the highlands of Iceland, which many see as a sacred place, not to be touched or disturbed by humans. But when a closer look is taken, you come to realize that we are in fact constantly touching and changing it, just like every other part of our environment. Is the air, for example, not a part of nature?  

It is an inescapable truth that we are constantly touching nature in some way. I believe in order for us to be conscious and responsible towards our environment, it is important for us to touch it and have an honest conversation with it. In this way, we can hopefully grow to have a more responsible approach to our environment. 

The outcome of this project was that we marked out and claimed a certain area in the highlands of Iceland. The contents of that area were then moved and used to create a conversation platform where people could sit, touch, and connect with a part of their environment, and foremost, enter a conversation about the connection and responsibilities we have towards it.

The project was a collaboration between  Elín Sigríður Harðardóttir Inga Kristín Guðlaugsdóttir Íris Indriðadóttir Kjartan Óli Guðmundsson Signý Jónsdóttir

mountainedabout.com

“It isn't like anything on this earth doesn't come from this earth” Íris Indriðadóttir