The Marvellous Marble Factory
New Ways of Presenting Marble
The Marvellous Marble Factory is a fantastical reimagining of the wonderful world of stone marble. This installation highlights the exquisite nature of marble through the playful subversion of materiality, scale and process.
A twist on expectations allows participants to experience this luxurious and traditionally austere material in a delightful and refreshing new light.
Natural stones from granite, marble, onyx and quartz are carefully chosen and hand cut to mimic the appearance of ice cream, lollipops, chocolates and bonbons. The jarring realization that these deceptive items cannot be placed in the mouth creates an unexpected and surprising experience of stone.
Marble is typically applied on surfaces in large scale and over time its beauty recedes into the background. By changing the scale of interaction, these pieces are able to call greater attention to the range and complexity of stone textures through close inspection.
The Marvellous Marble Factory addresses the SingaPlural 2015 festival theme of “Process”. The installation responds to our current fixation with process, its role in establishing the authenticity of products and the exaltation of storytelling.
The installation presents as convincingly as possible the fabricated tale of how marble is ‘made’ in a fictional universe where pigments are sourced from exotic locales, amalgamated and cured into the slabs we see today. Machines for the factory were built from scratch to add weight to the reality of this world. These contraptions were designed to look possible, yet ultimately farcical.
The unreliable nature of The Marvellous Marble Factory provokes contemplation and curiousity over the true story of stone marble – inviting participants to reconcile their visit to the factory with what they know of the natural stone industry.
The Marvellous Marble Factory begs the question: What is more important? Consuming the story or the truth?