An Epoch

An Epoch (2025) is a small, reconstructed rock composed of geological grains collected in human-disturbed sites in the semi-desert region of the Tankwa Karoo, South Africa, and an accompanying photographic series documenting these sites. Human traces recorded in the work include vernacular structures and stone tools of indigenous Khoe-Sān peoples; decommissioned colonial agricultural infrastructures, such as dams, reservoirs, and fences; and contemporary tourist and leisure infrastructures, including a private airport, biker tracks, and a music festival scrapyard. 

The Tankwa Karoo is a geologically significant location, exposing relatively undisturbed rock formations and records from millions of years of tectonic and erosion processes. Archaeological evidence, including rock art and stone tools, indexes an ancient  human history in the Karoo; San hunter-gathers have lived and travelled through the region for several thousand years. During the colonial era, the landscape was marked by violence and dispossession towards the indigenous Khoe-Sān peoples. At the same time, the erection of colonial agricultural infrastructures disturbed native habitats and herding routes, contributing to the ongoing desertification of the region.