Anthropocene Monument
Over the past centuries, humans have disconnected from the universe that once provided the source of their existence. Rather than simply watch the Earth suffocate under the weight of our refuse, the Indonesian Upcycle Forum and the Goethe-Institut Indonesien created a visionary space for reconnection. The Monumen Antroposen (Anthropocene Monument) in Yogyakarta is an architectural, social and creative blueprint. An upcycling factory, sociocultural center and makerspace will be created on a giant landfill. We created a new brand and corporate design in digital co-creation workshops with the project partners.
Goethe-Institut Indonesien
Anthropocene Monument
2022
For brand positioning, we found that the most promising focus groups were tourism, artists and local communities – one for each of the brand’s core activities. The branding for a social project must speak the people’s language. A brand’s sustainability only lasts as long as it is fun to work with and its values remain representative. The idea of the Anthropocene Monument is visionary. Local residents, who used to ship their waste to the landfill anonymously, will use digital tools to personally send their materials to the monument’s upcycling team. Once collected, sorted and cleaned, the material will be shredded at the factory and recycled at the makerspace. The resulting products will be shipped around the world to recoup project costs and spread the word. Artists will be invited to residencies. Regional and international tourists will be attracted by the monument’s social and environmental engagement.
The project is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office and the Goethe-Institut. Rendering: Indonesian Upcycle Forum & Goethe-Institut Indonesien
The unique architectural site atop the former dump has historic roots in a sacred place. Where the monument now stands, there once stood a temple. So its holistic approach and circular economic concept totally fit the spiritual idea of humanity reconnecting with the universe. Even the black »stones« are to be upcycled from the ground the monument will stand on. Everything that is to be built on the site was once buried beneath the ground in the dump.
The logo of the Anthropocene Monument refers not only to the architectural site but also to the brand’s three main activities: First, to create connections among people from the rural and metropolitan region as a sociocultural center. Second, to recycle waste into usable products as a makerspace. And third, to attract tourists from all over the world as a site of interest. These three areas of involvement are linked by a common mission: to sustain and support humanity.
Photo: YouTube / Indonesian Upcycle Forum & Goethe-Institut Indonesien
The background patterns used in the monument’s corporate design derive from images of Earth as seen from space. A variety of applications are possible, from global overviews depicting entire continents to more detailed views of animals, people and houses photographed from closer to the planet’s surface.
The images shown here are mock-ups for possible future publications. See our previous work for the Goethe-Institut Indonesien: Cultural Exchange
