Chris Natt

Blastproof

Undetonated landmines and explosive remnants of war are one of the most enduring barriers to development in post-war territories. These man-made, mechanical soldiers of war are hidden, life-threatening obstacles that often stand between civilians and the ability to fulfill their basic needs, trapping some of the poorest communities of the world in poverty and injuring thousands who, through desperation, dare to enter their potentially deadly domain.

Manual mine clearance by trained professionals called ‘deminers’ remains the most commonly used method of mine clearance and is currently the only guaranteed way of assessing if land can offer safe future passage and use. However, the basic tools used by deminers, since mine clearance began in the 1980s, have remained fundamentally unchanged despite huge financial investment to find mechanical unmanned replacements.

'Blastproof' is a collection of simple robust tools that have been developed for deminers, offering an invaluable tangible understanding of the mechanical enemy through simulations and greater protection through tools that mitigate injury by distancing and shielding those from the potential impact of an accidental blast.