Pitch Bird ‘2 (Pechvogel)

First Chapter Essay (English): Pitch Bird

“An unusually embellished representation of a flanged pipe can be seen. The pipe is part of a borehole closure (christmas tree) of an underground oil reservoir, which has been developed by drilling operators. With the help of this technological device it is possible to extract crude oil and natural gas from the oil production well in a controlled manner and feed the fluids into a pipeline.

These pipelines lay the foundation for a global network of steel veins connecting human history with earth history and uniting them with our everyday lives. Pipelines are part of a contact space where modernity encounters its unimaginable fossil basis. Subsurface extraction, well flow rate and pipeline feeding are managed by regulating the pressure and chemistry in the pipeline. This is achieved by a controlled injection of gases and liquid agents into the borehole.

The rich gold ornamentation makes the bird, as well as the steel pipe congeal in a kind of majesty, similar to a statue. So what the dazzling glitter of gold and the festively decorated plumage hides and frees from intrusive glances, are the effects of an administration and a management that allows millions of years old energy sources to melt away, to make them available for economic growth.”