Leipzig, Germany artist Alexander Endrullat traded in traditional gravure printing plates for discarded laptops. His ongoing series is titled Off the Grid A familiar but annoying scenario arises: having an old device that can no longer be updated, rendering it virtually unusable. Ndrulat’s impulsive discovery of this unique technology came out of his frustration when he was pushing his device into a printing press.
“One of the most interesting aspects of this process is how clearly visible the progressive destruction of the device becomes after each print,” explains the artist. With each pass, the device undergoes more and more changes, revealing details about its innards and its previous owners—the remnants of worn keys, remnants of stickers, or webcam covers that have been used the most. It also became more challenging to wipe the ink between prints throughout the process as the glass screen and touchpad began to crack.
The artist’s studio press is about a hundred years old, creating a fascinating contrast between the tool’s longevity – either rugged and durable, or short-lived, perhaps even reminiscent of planned obsolescence. “the collection reflects on materiality, consumption and hidden architecture
“Digital equipment,” he said, “but I might just like the sound the laptop makes when it first passes through the printing press.”
Endrullat wanted to try printing the entire computer setup, including mouse, keyboard, monitor, etc., which would ultimately require a different type of printer. Browse the artist’s creative process and find more work on his Instagram.
