Drawing inspiration from the principles of archaeology, Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Olivia de Gouveia designed a series of structures that reveal something about the present in a fictional future.
“Apocalyptopia” is what De Gouveia calls “inverse archaeology”. She explains that we live in an age where displacement as a result of both economic and natural catastrophes is “a widespread malaise characterising our times”.
De Gouveia’s project “Apocalyptopia” uses shipwrecks as a visual symbol to reflect this concept of displacement.
Looking to the displaced boats found along the infamous Skeleton Coast of De Gouveia’s native Namibia, she also observed shipwrecks globally and particularly one caused by the Japanese tsunami of March 2011.
Taking the visual of a stranded ship perched on top of a two-storey building, De Gouveia presents skeletal fragments that only hint at their origin, which works to reinforce the feeling of “being neither here nor there”.
The skeletal fragments bear down on the individual, creating the same feeling of displacement that they symbolise. It’s also about forming a bridge across time, serving as a critique on contemporary society for future generations to discover.
