Dutch designer Xandra van der Eijk has poured household chemicals onto widely available metal objects in an installation that aims to demonstrate how chemical waste dumping is affecting the earth in the anthropocene era.
Called Future Remnants, the installation is inspired by the anthropocene era ? a term used to describe the period in which human impact has become the dominant force on the earth's geology.
The installation specifically explores the dumping of chemical waste, which is when substances that should be properly disposed of, instead end up in the landscape.

On show at Dutch Design Week, which ran from 20 to 28 October, the installation featured a series of steel, aluminium, zinc and copper objects that have been exposed to relatively low-chemical household solutions for periods of two to seven days. "The Netherlands has quite a reputation for it: we are a major drug country, and what happens is that the waste is being dumped in backcountry and forests," van der Eijk told Dezeen.
"Trucks full of barrels with chemical substances are pulled off the truck with a rope, causing them to land with a bang, making them leak from the moment of dumping," she continued.

The objects feature a variety of patterns and colours with some exhibiting crystal formations. These are meant to represent, on a smaller scale, the impact of chemical waste dumping on the environment.

"Imagine what could happen with larger amounts, stronger concentrations and...