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Noir Obscur

Deep in the Belgian countryside lies a quarry that for hundreds of years has been providing the blackest of stones: Noir De Golzinne, or Black Marble from Belgium. It is mostly popularised by its use in the Florentine mosaic technique “Commesso Fiorentino”, dating back to the renaissance. Although prestigious in its use, the source or even existence of it, is hardly known. 

This work is the result of a research into the origins and processing of this obscure material, and the way aesthetic values are determined by the industry. The photos depict pieces of discarded marble found on the quarry: heaps of blocks that have been refused because the market only requires and values the aesthetics of its pure black.