Planet of People
Julijonas Urbonas
Where should our bodies go once we die?
Overpopulation means more births, more deaths, and less space. What are we to do with humanity’s remains when there is no longer enough space to bury our dead? Enter a novel proposal - shooting those same bodies off to space to form their own planet. If you ever imagined a simple burial or cremation once you die, think bigger. Instead of a tombstone, be part of a cosmic fossil. Your frozen body could gently float amongst the stars to reach L2, an area in space where gravity is absent. Once there, it would slowly converge with other bodies to form a giant homogenous blob, growing steadily until a new planet is formed. Step up to the 3D scanner and watch as you are launched into space to join our growing monument of humans, to humans.
What does overpopulation mean for our future?
Julijonas Urbonas is a Lithuanian artist, designer and engineer who has spent his career trying to manipulate the forces of gravity. Attempting to bend it to his will, he has invented “gravitational aesthetics”, a new school of thought based around creating extreme simulations for the body and mind.
He is also the founder of the Lithuanian Space Agency, Associate Professor and former Prorector at Vilnius Academy of Arts, and former director of an amusement park in Klaipeda. This work was developed in collaboration with the Lithuanian Space Agency team.