H BOMB by Michael Cummings
By looking at the progression of weapons between WWI and WWII I begin to build an understanding of how warfare develops as it catches up with defenses and technology. As a result, the instruments of war become increasingly deadly, and casualties of war rise exponentially.
Imperial War Museum
(London)
The period between World War I and II saw a rapid growth in the technology of war and destruction. Through the analysis of weapons, vehicles, and the modification of natural terrain between 1914-1945, the aim is to identify how war is able to shape the evolution of design and how it transforms fictional ideas of the future into reality.
Through the analysis of the transition between World War I and II, one can observe the scalability of conflict that begins with anti-personnel warfare in the first war that eventually expands to include the dominance and destruction of the environment and architecture, going beyond the notion of collateral structural damage, and transforming into the intentional destruction of infrastructure.
Through the developments of the world wars, I look at modern warfare and how as technology progresses, warfare can now be carried out remotely with a larger area of effect. Forensic architecture uncovers the accountability behind these attacks and how perpetrators of war are increasingly veiled from the reality of warfare.
Forensic
Architecture
Understanding research and modern warfare, Forensic Architecture and the deconstruction of conflict
Chemical Weapon
(White Phosphorus)
Large area of effect, documented
“During and in the aftermath of the Israeli attack on Gaza of December 2008–January 2009, known as “Operation Cast Lead,” news reports have repeatedly shown images of a hitherto little-known type of weapon. These images displayed airborne explosions releasing tentacles of smoking fragments onto densely inhabited parts of the Gaza Strip.”
“Because of its incendiary and toxic effects, the use of white phosphorus in populated areas is highly controversial.”
White phosphorous is a highly flammable and toxic chemical that can cause severe burns, poisoning and can be absorbed easily through skin. As a result, exploding it over densely populated areas will cause adverse effects to all that is exposed to it.
Due to its nature, it not only physically damages a space through arson but it’s also a chemical weapon that can only be avoided through a sealed fireproof environment or a full body suit with breathing apparatus.