elizabeth lessig

dead zones_cities of nowhere

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

threat = adaptation
nowhere
invisible material artifact of

somewhere
boundaries landscapes of fear containment quarantine evacuation loss culture religion history

threat
toxic radiation mutation changing temporal exchange fluctuating

RISK

toxic threat

site dystopia adaptation

excess energy consumption production gloriously catastrophic

economic social

new geographies

evolution utopia progress

plumes atmoshphere

survival

ideogram

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

threat=adaptation

Kyshtym Diaster, Mayak

First Chalk Accident SL-1 Experiment 3 mile island

Sella eld, UK Windscale Fire, UK Saint Laurent Lucens, Switerland Jaslovshe, Czech

Chernobyl
Tokaimura

Fukushima

LEVEL 7

Goiania, Brazil

LEVEL 6

Buenos Aires

LEVEL 5

LEVEL 4

INES Levels (International Nuclear Event Scale)

toxic threat

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

sites of nuclear radiation

Chernobyl Disaster Kyshtym Disaster Mayak, Soveit Union INES (International Nuclear Event Scale) - introduced by the International Atomic Energy Agency Three Mile Island Accident Harrisburg, Pennsyvania

Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster

1945

1954

1957

1979

1986

1990

2011

Trinity rst-ever test of a nuclear weapon

Castle Bravo Largest weapon ever tested by the US.

Last Soviet nuclear test Operation Crossroads rst underwater nuclear explosion Hiroshima. Nagasaki. Sedan - part of operation plowshare Nevada Test Site

nuclear history

sites of testing and accidents

experimentation is a locus of tremendous ethical anxiety....that travels way beyond good + evil -Avital Ronell

the H-bomb, thats the ultimate sculpture - Michael Heizer

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

instant

instant

hours hours

oneday oneday oneyear

oneyear

Acceptable Risk
eatingabanana airportsecurityscanmaxpermitted
.1

effect of radiation on the human body

.01
.25

PerdayinTokyo,250km SWofFukushima
(107daysafterthedisater)

dentalx-ray
5 7.5 10

backgrounddosebyanavg.person
10

flightfromNewYorktoLA
40

averagetotaldoseperperson within10milesof3mileisland Onehourdose3kmSWofFukushimaPlant (83daysafterthedisater) Releaselimitforanuclear powerplantforayear

100

EPAyearlylimitonartificialradaitionexposuretoamemberofthepublic
1,000

Dosefromspendingonehouron thegroundatChernobylin2010 averageCTscan

10,000

smoking1.5packsadayforayear

lowestannualdosewhereincreased lifetimeriskofcancerisevident
100,000

maximumradiationlevelsdetected atFukushimaperhour

slightdecreaseinbloodcellcounts returintonormalinafewdays perhourinsurfacewaterintunnels outsideFukushimaNo.2reactor temporaryradiationsickness. nausea,lowbloodcellcount.

1,000,000 10,000,000
30,000,000

fataldose,dealthwithin2weeks seizersandtremors. deathwithin48hours

10minexposuretotheChernobyl reactorcoreaftermeltdown

50,000,000

50,000,000

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

+22years=
source:http://www.time.com/

adaptation

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

comparison analysis

KyshtymDisaster
Mayak,SoveitUnion

ThreeMileIslandAccident
Harrisburg,Pennsyvania

ChernobylDisaster
Prypiat,Ukraine 1986

FukushimaDaiichi
Fukshima,Japan

plumes

radiation plume

The concept of atmosphere troubles architectural discourse - haunting those that try to escape it and eluding those that chase it. - Mark Wigley

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

minsk

Russia

Belarus

con scated/closed zone

> 40 ci/km2 of cesium-137

permanent control zone

15-40 ci/km2 of cesium-137 15-40 ci/km2 of cesium-137 1-15 ci/km2 of cesium-137

periodic control zone unnamed zone

Ukraine

kiev

country border rivers

control

radiation plume of Chernobly

as with stitching up wounds to the skin that are only recurring symptoms of some larger failing, the continual patching over of problems...fails to adequately address their source - James Corner

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

animation sequence
radiation plume of chernobly

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

layering diagram
March 12- 18, 2011

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

radiation plume of Fuhisima

trace + trail

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art

radiation plume of Fuhisima March 12- 18, 2011

physical experiments
photo of plume models

Representation precedent: Maya Lin + Cero9

Elizabeth Lessig Dead Zones_Cities of Nowhere Extreme Environments California College of Art