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(82,333 posts) Fri Mar 28, 2014, 11:18 AM Mar 2014

Creating Sand Castles With A Single Grain Of Sand

By Zach Sokol — Mar 27 2014

After four years of trial-and-error experimentation, artist Vik Muniz and artist/researcher Marcelo Coelho successfully created drawings as tiny as they are tremendous: magnificent castles etched onto microscopic grains of sand—a complete and innovative reversal of building a sand castle.

At less than half a millimeter in length, crisp drawings appear on flecks of earth that seem inconsequential to the naked eye. Muniz, an artist known for works that alter perspectives based on context, used to create massive, 500-meter-long drawings that could only be seen from helicopter. At ground level, these sketches looked just like dug-out paths in dirt. About five years ago, however, Muniz began thinking in the opposite direction: what if he could make drawings both miniature and monumental?

Above, watch our documentary on these micro sand castles, debuting today at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art as part of a comprehensive exhibit on the work of Vik Muniz. The Creators Project is exploring the ways in which technology is allowing the size of our canvas to shrink or grow dramatically. From microscopic art to projects with the ambition to (literally) paint the sky, we are looking at artists who are seeking out new canvases, and as part of that pursuit, new methods of creation. Continue below for more on Muniz and Coelho's mind-blowing process behind their seemingly-imperceptible engravings.

To achieve these etchings, Muniz and Coelho devised a highly-technical process, that involved both antiquated technology and innovative visual tools. Muniz first created sketches of castles using a camera lucida, an optical superimposition device created in 1807 that turns images in front of the viewer into a projection on piece of paper, allowing him to trace the tiny castles.

http://thecreatorsproject.vice.com/blog/creating-sand-castles-with-a-single-grain-of-sand

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