It’s 20 years since Massive Attack released the groundbreaking Mezzanine. Still restless and forward-facing, founding member Robert ‘3D’ Del Naja has decided to can the landmark album by way of celebration. Working with scientists in Switzerland, he has encoded the digital bitstream of the album into strands of artificial DNA, encased them in microscopic glass beads and turned that into black paint (a nod to Del Naja’s sideline as a graffiti artist). The concept just scooped Best Canned Music in our Wallpaper* Design Awards.
RELATED STORY
The use of DNA to store digital information is actually one of science’s hottest research areas; a gram of double helixes could potentially store 500 billion gigs of data. Massive Attack settled for a measly million copies of the album in each can of Mezzanine paint.
Designed by long-term collaborator Tom Hingston and Del Naja, just 30 cans will be made available in early March.
As originally featured in the February 2019 issue of Wallpaper* (W*239)
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Massive Attack website
-
Aesthetics and acoustics come together in the Braque speakers from Nocs DesignThe Braque speakers bring the art of noise, sitting atop a brushed steel cube that wouldn’t look out of place in a contemporary gallery
-
Inside the seductive and mischievous relationship between Paul Thek and Peter HujarUntil now, little has been known about the deep friendship between artist Thek and photographer Hujar, something set to change with the release of their previously unpublished letters and photographs
-
In addition to brutalist buildings, Alison Smithson designed some of the most creative Christmas cards we've seenThe architect’s collection of season’s greetings is on show at the Roca London Gallery, just in time for the holidays
-
Out of office: The Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekIt’s wet, windy and wintry and, this week, the Wallpaper* team craved moments of escape. We found it in memories of the Mediterranean, flavours of Mexico, and immersions in the worlds of music and art
-
Out of office: The Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekThe clocks have gone back in the UK and evenings are officially cloaked in darkness. Cue nights spent tucked away in London’s cosy corners – this week, the Wallpaper* team opted for a Latin-inspired listening bar, an underground arts space, and a brand new hotel in Shoreditch
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekThis week, our editors have been privy to the latest restaurants, art, music, wellness treatments and car shows. Highlights include a germinating artwork and a cruise along the Pacific Coast Highway…
-
Pantone’s new public art installation is a tribute to Coldplay’s ‘Yellow’, 25 years after its releaseThe colour company has created a – you guessed it – yellow colour swatch on some steps in Wembley Park, London, where the band will play ten shows this month
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekThe Wallpaper* team immersed themselves in culture this week, attending theatre, music and art performances and exhibitions at some of London’s most esteemed establishments. Along the way, we may have discovered the city's best salad…
-
The Chemical Brothers’ Tom Rowlands on creating an electronic score for historical drama, MussoliniTom Rowlands has composed ‘The Way Violence Should Be’ for Sky’s eight-part, Italian-language Mussolini: Son of the Century
-
Tate Modern to host Aphex Twin listening experienceA free listening event for Aphex Twin's reissued album 'Selected Ambient Works II (Expanded Edition)' on the 25th of October
-
Björk announces Cornucopia: The BookThe photographic documentation of Björk’s otherworldly tour
