nach wie vor

i
Wastewater treatment plant Uster, 2011
Art in public space
Concrete, expanded clay, plastic hose, water
180 cm × 1000 cm × 130 cm
<i>nach wie vor,</i> Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach<br>

nach wie vor, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

after is before – The fountain is placed next to the entrance of the wastewater treatment works, ARA Jungholz, in Uster. I am interested in the ability of water to purify itself. The wastewater in the fountain is purified only through mechanical and biological means and is then recycled back into the water system. The water is pumped up into the sculpture from countless hoses under the earth. The surface of the sculpture – a carefully calibrated combination of mortar worked by hand and expanded clay pellets – is just porous enough for the water soaked up by the fountain to seep through the surface as if the stone were sweating.

nach wie vor, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

nach wie vor, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

<i>nach wie vor</i>, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

nach wie vor, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

<i>nach wie vor</i>, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

nach wie vor, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

<i>nach wie vor</i>, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

nach wie vor, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

nach wie vor, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Video: Claudia Bach

<i>nach wie vor</i>, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach

nach wie vor, Kläranlage Uster, 2011. Photo: Claudia Bach