Published intermittently between 1968 and 1974, the Whole Earth Catalog was an omnibus of equipment, architectural materials, vehicles, how-to manuals, cybernetics tracts, psychedelic literature, and other appurtenances of dropping out—Sears, Roebuck for the counter culture. The catalog has often been hailed as a proto-Internet for its crowd-sourced contributions, yet a consistent voice can be found in the comments of founder and financial backer Stewart Brand (SB), which are scattered throughout its pages. Here, artist Mary Mattingly (MM), whose work has long explored scenarios of ecological collapse, makes a few updates to the catalog’s compendium of tools: geodesic domes, self-sufficient living systems, solar-powered wearable homes, and other practical constructions to be used in case of catastrophe.
Published intermittently between 1968 and 1974, the Whole Earth Catalog was an omnibus of equipment, architectural materials, vehicles, how-to manuals, cybernetics tracts, psychedelic literature, and other appurtenances of dropping out—Sears, Roebuck for the counter culture. The catalog has often been hailed as a proto-Internet for its crowd-sourced contributions, yet a consistent voice can be found in the comments of founder and financial backer Stewart Brand (SB), which are scattered throughout its pages. Here, artist Mary Mattingly (MM), whose work has long explored scenarios of ecological collapse, makes a few updates to the catalog’s compendium of tools: geodesic domes, self-sufficient living systems, solar-powered wearable homes, and other practical constructions to be used in case of catastrophe.