Artistic Air: Pollution's Creative Expression

Artists have been using their creative talents to address pressing environmental issues, such as air pollution, for decades. Art that centres on environmental themes is known as environmental art, which emerged in the 1960s and emphasises the interconnectedness of humans and nature. Artists like Michael Pinsky and his project, Pollution Pods, exemplify how art can stimulate climate action. The Pollution Pods project consists of five domes, each imitating the air in five different areas of the world: Northern Norway, London, New Delhi, Beijing, and São Paulo. As visitors move through the domes, they experience varied levels and sources of air pollution. Another example of an artistic project with air pollution is Graviky Labs, a startup that has developed technology to capture particulate matter from diesel exhaust systems and turn it into ink, called Air-Ink, for artists to use. Artists like Andrea Polli and Chuck Varga created Particle Falls, a projected waterfall of light representing air quality in various US cities.

Air-Ink: Ink made from air pollution used to paint murals in cities around the world

Air-Ink is a creative project that uses ink made from air pollution to paint murals in cities around the world. The project was conceived by Anirudh Sharma, a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), who was inspired to address the issue of air pollution in his home country of India.

Sharma founded Graviky Labs, a startup that developed technology to capture particulate matter from diesel exhaust systems. The team treats the collected soot to create Air-Ink, a rich, water-resistant black ink that can be used in various artistic applications, such as pens, markers, and screen printing. Each 30 ml bottle of Air Ink is made from air pollution equivalent to 45 minutes of car exhaust emissions.

The Air-Ink project has brought together art, design, innovation, and an ecological mindset to raise awareness about global air pollution. The project first gained popularity through a social media campaign by the Aditya Birla Group, followed by a month-long exhibition of large-scale art pieces created with Air-Ink at the group's offices.

The project has since expanded to public spaces in cities like Singapore, New York, Berlin, and London, where renowned artists have created murals and canvases using Air-Ink. These artistic pieces not only showcase the creative potential of the ink but also draw attention to the adverse effects of air pollution on our environment, including heritage monuments, wildlife, human health, and flora and fauna.

The use of Air-Ink in these cities transforms air pollution into a beautifying agent, showcasing the possibility of turning a harmful substance into something useful and artistic. By involving renowned artists and displaying the artworks in public spaces, the project effectively combines creativity and environmental advocacy to address a pressing global issue.

Pollution Pods: An immersive experience highlighting varying air quality in different cities

Pollution Pods is an immersive art installation that offers visitors a unique sensory experience by simulating the air pollution levels in five cities: Trondheim, Norway; London; New Delhi, India; Beijing; and São Paulo. The pods were created by British artist Michael Pinsky and debuted in 2017 in Trondheim, Norway, as part of the STARMUS festival.

Each pod is a dome-shaped structure made of Norwegian reclaimed wood and PVC bioplastic membranes. The installations use a combination of humidifiers, haze generators, scent diffusers, and an ozone machine to recreate the air quality of each city. For example, in the London pod, visitors experience the smell of diesel fuel, while the Beijing pod mixes industrial fumes, coal or wood-based heating, and transportation emissions.

The Pollution Pods have travelled to various locations, including London's Somerset House for Earth Day in 2018 and the 2019 TED conference in Vancouver. The exhibit has also been presented to environmental ministers of France and Spain and the president of Costa Rica. At the 74th United Nations General Assembly in partnership with the World Health Organization in New York in 2019, climate activist Greta Thunberg experienced the Pollution Pods.

The aim of this artistic project is to raise awareness about air pollution and its varying levels in different cities. By allowing people to experience the air quality of these cities first-hand, the installation highlights the urgent need to address this global issue. While the impact of such initiatives on behavioural changes remains a subject of research, they undoubtedly spark conversations and draw attention to the problem.

Smog-free Tower: A tower that sucks up polluted air, cleans it, and releases it back into the atmosphere

The Smog-Free Tower is a large-scale air purifier designed to reduce air pollution particles, or smog. Dutch artist and engineer Daan Roosegaarde created the tower, which he calls the "largest smog vacuum cleaner in the world". The tower sucks up polluted air, cleans it using patented positive ionization technology, and then releases the clean air back into the city. The process uses little energy, with a power consumption of around 1400 watts, comparable to that of light bulbs.

The Smog-Free Tower has been used in several cities around the world, including Rotterdam, Beijing, Tianjin, Dalian, China, Kraków, Poland, Anyang, South Korea, and Abu Dhabi. The tower stands at 7 meters (23 feet) tall and can clean 30,000 cubic meters of polluted air per hour, making the air around it 55 to 75% cleaner than the rest of the city.

The process of cleaning the air involves using ion technology to create a sphere of positively charged ions. When the ground is negatively charged, the particles are pulled downwards, resulting in clean air. The filtered air is then released through the tower's vents.

While the Smog-Free Tower has been praised as an innovative solution to urban air pollution, some experts have expressed scepticism about its effectiveness. For example, Professor Alastair Lewis, Science Director at the NCAS, argues that static air cleaners may not be able to process enough city air to significantly reduce urban pollution. Additionally, critics have pointed out that the tower in Delhi, India, would be powered mainly by coal-fired electricity, potentially adding to pollution in other areas of the country.

Despite these concerns, Roosegaarde remains committed to bringing the Smog-Free Tower to India and partnering with various organizations to develop further solutions to combat air pollution in cities worldwide.

Impressionist artwork: Paintings that capture the effects of air pollution on light and haze

A study published by the National Academy of Sciences analysed over 100 paintings by French painter Claude Monet and English artist Joseph Mallord William (J.M.W.) Turner, who created their masterpieces during the Industrial Revolution. The study found that the hazy landscapes favoured by these artists were not just dreamy depictions of nature but a reflection of the environmental conditions of their time.

Monet and Turner witnessed dramatic environmental changes during their lifetimes. Turner, born in 1775, lived through the first Industrial Revolution in London, a period known as the "'Big Smoke' due to air pollution from coal factories. Monet, on the other hand, experienced the second Industrial Revolution in London and Paris, as evident in his paintings like "The Houses of Parliament, Sunset" (1903).

The study, led by atmospheric scientist Anna Lea Albright, found that as industrial air pollution increased during their careers, the skies in their paintings became hazier. Albright noted that the artists' depictions of hazy landscapes were not due to any issues with their eyesight but rather the result of environmental changes affecting the light around them. The presence of toxic microscopic particles in the air absorbed and scattered light, making distant objects appear hazier and giving images a whiter tint.

According to Peter Huybers, a co-author of the study and a professor at Harvard University, Monet and Turner's impressionistic paintings "capture a certain reality." He noted that the artists realistically portrayed how sunlight filters through pollution and clouds, demonstrating that impressionism can depict polluted realism. The study concluded that impressionistic paintings recording natural phenomena highlight the connection between art and the environment.

The impact of air pollution on the artistic style of Monet and Turner extends beyond their interpretation of the hazy skies. The increased haziness in their paintings, resulting from higher levels of air pollution, contributed to the development of their unique impressionistic style. The contours of their paintings became less defined, the colour palettes expanded, and their techniques evolved from figurative to more impressionistic approaches. This transformation in their artistic styles aligns with the physical expectations of how air pollution influences light.

Data visualisation: Using art to make air-quality data more accessible and understandable

Art has long been a medium for addressing societal issues, and artists have increasingly leveraged their creative talents to address pressing environmental concerns, such as air pollution. Data visualisation is a powerful tool that artists are using to make complex air-quality data more accessible and understandable to diverse audiences.

One notable example of data visualisation in artistic expression is the work of American artist Andrea Polli. Polli focuses on finding innovative ways to visualise air pollution for audiences who may otherwise struggle to engage with the data. Her installation, Particle Falls, is a projected waterfall of light that dynamically represents air quality in real time. The artwork is controlled by a nephelometer, a device that uses a light beam to measure the concentration of fine particulate matter. As the level of pollutants increases, a blue stream of pixels is interrupted with warning flashes of yellow and red, providing a visually striking representation of air quality.

Another artist, Anirudh Sharma, co-founder of Graviky Labs, has developed a technology that attaches to diesel exhaust systems to capture particulate matter. The collected soot is treated and transformed into a rich, water-resistant black ink called Air-Ink. This ink has been used by artists worldwide to create murals and canvases, with each piece focusing on the adverse effects of air pollution. Sharma's project not only raises awareness about air pollution but also offers a creative solution to convert harmful emissions into a usable resource.

Michael Pinsky's Pollution Pods is another artistic project that creates an immersive experience highlighting varying air quality in different cities. Each pod imitates the air quality in different areas of the world, such as Northern Norway, London, New Delhi, Beijing, and São Paulo. As visitors move through the pods, they experience varied levels and sources of air pollution, stimulating their senses and urging them to advocate for cleaner air.

These artistic endeavours showcase how data visualisation can be effectively employed to make air-quality data more accessible and understandable. By combining creativity and scientific data, artists are playing a pivotal role in raising awareness, stimulating dialogue, and inspiring action to address pressing environmental challenges.

Frequently asked questions