I grew up between ancient sites, a place between lakes and rivers that have existed for thousands of years, linked with ancient history and mythological creatures. Most of these sites now have water contaminated from pesticides. You could see the cold, fresh, attractive transparent water coming from the mountains, but you couldn’t drink it. You could barely touch it. Bottled water was the only water you could trust. The fountain of monsters connects primeval fears related to water with current fears of pollution and contamination. An emphasis is drawn using a comparison between the monstrous water creatures of ancient Greek mythology and the monsters that exist in water today: chemicals from agriculture, industry, and oil, as well as micro-and nanoplastics. Even bottled water has been proven to contain excessive levels of microplastics.
Fountains have an important role in social history and imagination. They were originally constructed to supply ancient communities with clean water, like springs, and at the same time served as social spaces. In fountains from Roman times to the Renaissance, it was a common practice for clean water to come out of the mouths of Greek mythological deities or monsters such as the Gorgons. Nowadays, huge structures such as water treatment plants have replaced fountains to provide clean water to societies. Clean water is now a processed commodity—a commodity that comes in fancy, attractive bottles, with labels that say "pure".
The fountain of the monsters consists of layers derived from the shapes of mythological and mechanical constructions related to clean drinkable water: the shapes of gorgons and of water treatment plants.
Its form invites us to gather around the center and face towards it, but at the same time creates a distance from the desired water, making it seem apparently unreachable. The water is contained within an attractive, hypnotic shape inviting everyone to have it.
But do you want it?

Materials: Aluminum sheets, discarded plastic bottles, water (contaminated from Greece or bottled)