100 PACES

 

100 paces is an exercise in sampling the diversity of soil types occurring in the Plaine d'Arbois along the GR 2013 path from the TGV-Aix train station to Vitrolles. On a utility road adjacent to the trail, a 5 point transect was created by taking surface soil samples every 100 paces. The samples were photographed and placed in an animation comparing the texture and color of each sample with the original start sample.

 

The rocks found in this region - limestone, marl, sandstone, conglomerate and breccia - have their origins in the Eocene (56 - 34 million years ago). In our current geohistorical epoch, the Anthropocene, human technology plays an increasingly powerful role in shaping the patterns of geological erosion and deposition. Engineered additions to the road surface were in included in the samples to reflect this contemporary dynamic.