Field notes:
There is a hole in the earth
69°30'02.7"N 17°13'50.7"E
05.02.2018 - Trælen, Skaland.
At the foot of the mountain there is a hole in the earth. The entire mountain range has a mineral ore: Graphite. The black substance stretches through the rock like branching veins. High inside the mountain I look up at a block of graphite, 9 metric tonnes of it, wedged in between the walls of the mine shaft. It will be brought down with explosives later the same afternoon. I smell graphite, I see graphite, I touch graphite, I breathe graphite, I hear graphite churning, I am covered in graphite, graphite surrounds me. I have been allowed to walk out of the mine through an air shaft. I come out into the white light, high on the mountain side, then I turn and walk back inside. Inside → Outside → Inside. There is a difference between being on the outside of a mountain and on the inside of a mountain. I pick up a small block from the ground, it has a cold, fatty and smooth surface. I am holding a relative in my hand, I am 18% carbon, it is the basic building block to most of the cells in my body. I hold graphite in my hands every day. It is the elongation of my body and my thought. I put the block in a plastic grocery bag. I am here to collect what I need, I am here to bring with me something that is important to me. The inside is brought to the outside.