AOR-200Marnix de Nijs (NL)

Autonomous Oil Reserve, 2018

The AOR-200 is a DIY consumer system to protect a personal oil reserve. The system is screwed easily into a standard oil barrel and - once fired up - it protects the barrel against anybody trying to steal the precious liquid. A personal oil reserve is a necessity in the current timeframe in which oil production is under constant pressure and a shortage is not difficult to imagine.

How does the system work? Highly responsive sensors included in the protection system detect any movement of the object itself or people trying to intrude into the surrounding space. The system is powered by a flame that is fed by the oil of the reserve. The flame heats a Peltier element that converts heat into electricity, which in turn powers the sensors. While protecting itself, the reserve, in a sense, eats itself up. If an approaching person is detected, pure oxygen will stream into the oil barrel at a pressure of 300 bar. The barrel cannot take this enormous pressure and will explode, the diffusing oil and oxygen mix being lit by the flame that powered the Peltier element.

The AOR-200 can hold 200 litres of oil, up to 10 barrels can however be protected by the same system. If a bigger reserve is required, multiply the whole system. Protecting decentralised smaller amounts of oil with individual systems is tactically safer in case of system failure and the protection system is more difficult to dismantle.

Decide yourself for what purpose the last drops of the precious liquid are used for. Make sure to have your own oil reserve.

Marnix de Nijs (NL)

Marnix de Nijs is an Rotterdam based installation artist and researcher who has been working with full body participation in immersive audio visual environments since the late nineties. His works include mainly interactively experienced machines that play with the perception and control of image and sound, but also, radical and humorous pieces such as his Bullet Proof Tent & Lingerie, the Physiognomic Scrutinizer and his Autonomous Oil Reserve. Impelled by the idea that technology acts as a driving force behind cultural change and is therefore capable of generating new experiences in which societal habits and communication are rethought, his work thrives on the creative possibilities offered by new technologies, while critically examining their impact on contemporary society and human perception.

De Nijs' works have been widely exhibited at international art institutes, museums and festivals. He received honorable mentions at the Prix Ars Electronica in 2013, 2005 and 2001. In 2005 he collected the prestigious Dutch Witteveen+Bos Art+Technology Award, for his entire oeuvre.

contact: info@marnixdenijs.nl