“The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff.” Carl Sagan, Cosmos.

In Star Trek: The Motion Picture upon encounter with a mysterious alien entity called ‘V’ger’, that the crew of the enterprise is referred to as ‘Carbon-based units’. Looking a little confused a security officer says in one encounter with a probe from V’ger ‘Carbon-based units?’ to which Leonard McCoy responds ‘Humans. Ensign Perez. Us’. While there is some truth to it (Oxygen though being the most abundant in the human body) carbon is the second most abundant in our bodies and essential to life. It is the main element of components in the body such as sugars, DNA and muscle tissue as well as many others. To put it short, life, as we know it on planet earth, could not exist without carbon.

The carbon atom contains 6 electrons, 6 protons, and 6 neutrons and belongs to group 14 of the periodic table. It’s the 15th most abundant element on earth and by the mass the 4th Most abundant in the Universe behind Hydrogen, Helium, and Oxygen. Carbon atoms can bond in together in a few different ways. These are called Allotropes and a few elements have the ability to do this. To put it simply, it’s when an element can exist in two or more physical forms within the same physical state (such as solid). Carbon has quite a few allotropes. Two of the most well-known would be Diamond and Graphite.

The origins of carbon can be traced all the way back to giant furnaces that populate the cosmos. Stars many times the mass of our sun are able to fuse heavy elements during their life within their cores. One of these elements is Carbon. However, to escape the star, the star itself will need to die first. In supergiant stars, the battle between gravity and fusion is over the moment the star makes iron within the core. Iron cannot provide the energy needed to support the fusion process pushing outwards against the star's own gravity. The balance ends, and the star implodes. A shockwave then expands outwards carrying with it materials from within the stars and creating heavier elements on the way out. The carbon now disperses within the interstellar medium along with all the other materials which will go on to form new stars like our own sun and solar system.

These drawings are created using the remnants of dead stars. Incorporating a range of materials containing atomic elements that trace back to the hearts of stars during their life and death they serve as a monument to these fallen giants. Carbon is the richest element within the drawings. Applied rapidly, Ink expands and disperses within the soaked paper with the rich element filled ink recreating the moment of death for a supergiant star. The drawings break down distance and time to echo the moments where death and the seeds of life meet. Bridging the vast distances between us and these galactic furnaces to reaffirm that we are not just part of the cosmos but are actively part of it. The carbon atoms in these drawings, the carbon atoms in your body, the carbon in our machines and the carbon in all other living beings can be traced back to stars the lived light years above your heads.

Gaining an understanding of our origins and our place within the universe is at the center of the work. Answering questions such as how we were made? and where did everything come from? In short, were made of stardust. In a world where we seem to dominate our planet with infrastructure and advances in technology, it becomes more important to remember that we’re it not for these forces thousands of light-years away, we would not exist. Establishing links to nature and opening conversations about our relationship to the cosmos and nature.


The Carbon Drawings

Born out of the advice about social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, 'Distance 2020' seeks to look beyond the immediate anxiety of what's happening outside our windows and instead seeks to re-affirm our relationship with an entity that could be considered very isolated. While some people are getting upset about the distance we must stay apart from each other, the sun is much further from any of its own kind at 4.3 light-years. Despite this, it still provides us with life-giving warmth and light and continues to nourish our planet and our souls despite it being incredibly lonely.

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Lewis Andrews