samuel boutruche's beachside moonrace is a running competition on a lunar reconstruction

located in the state of oaxaca, puerto escondido is known for its massive waves that are appreciated by surfers from around the world, and for attracting both artists and artisans due to its cultural richness. after successfully completing a residency at the tadao ando designed bosco sodi, french artist samuel boutruche reconstituted the lunar surface where the russian mission to lunar 17 landed. additionally, the artist drew five 50 meter running tracks to inaugurate a new form of olympic competition. with the aid of 40 students, the piece resulted in a mix of practices, scales, spaces.

the art piece is a mix of practices, scales, spaces

according to boutruche, the beach implies a conflicts of interests between the defenders of nature and the promoters of land exploitation, as well as articulating a struggle between public and private spaces. the abundance of sand is the buffer zone between the over-exploited earth and the widely unknown oceans. in an effort to express these global challenges, boutruche explores the two aspects of the beach’s leisurely activities in his ‘moonrace’ piece. on one hand, he summons sports by means of a race where many joggers practice along the bank, while on the other hand, mixes the construction of the traditional sand castles to create a new scale of landscape.

puerto escondido is famously known for its surf-worthy waves

the artist explores the two aspects of the beach’s leisurely activities in his ‘moonrace’ piece

boutruche completed his project with the help of 40 students

the artist drew five 50 meter running tracks to inaugurate a new form of olympic competition

students performing the race

the artist and the group of students from rio grande, oaxaca

samuel boutruche at casa wabi

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynn chaya | designboom