2004Pink State - The Ice Cube Project
In 2004 Evaristti travelled to Greenland armed with red food colouring with the intention of establishing a provisional Pink State by painting an iceberg in Ilulissat Ice Fjord. That year the ice fjord had just been put on the UNESCO World Natural Heritage List and was also the subject of discussion on environmentally-caused climate change.
In Ilulissat there was initially a great deal of mistrust over the project amongst the local inhabitants of Ilulissat. Fortunately some fishermen with local knowledge helped Evaristti in his search for a suitable iceberg, but only after numerous warnings about the incredibly unstable and dangerous nature of icebergs. Evaristti would be placing his own life and the lives of other on the line if the iceberg were to tip over while he was carrying out his project. After a few hours of sailing, Evaristti found “his” iceberg, which he then climbed onto. With a fire hose and 4,000 litres of water mixed in with the red concentrated food colouring he would have four hours in -35 degrees Centigrade to paint the entire surface area of “his iceberg”. When Evaristti conquers his territory, it is an ephemeral and peaceful act, which only last as long as the territory bears the red colour.
When the police later knocked on Evaristti’s hotel door and asked him to clean up the iceberg, he replied that he would gladly do so when they had cleaned up Thulebasen. He did not hear any more on the matter.
