GASP
Enlarging the particles around us to reveal the largest threats to humanity.
See the air you breathe:
the artwork 'GASP' magnifies pollution 4000x to reveal what enters your lungs with every breath you take.
Air pollution is killing 7 million people each year.[1] Tiny invisible particles that cloud our judgement on the impact on our lives. To help us imagine the amount of pollutive particles around us, this artwork scans the air in real-time and enlarges these pollutive particles 4000 times for everyone to see.
Sensors in the artwork scan the air and detect all PM2.5 particles floating around you. Then the works enlarge the tiny particles 4000x and release them as drips of oil in water, creating a visible data-driven dance of ink and oil.
The 3 data-driven artworks work to reveal the difference between where you are now, a busy road, and a forest nearby in real-time. Offering viewers a comparative perspective on the impact of pollution in their immediate surroundings.
“We encounter data about air pollution each day, making us numbed by the numbers. When “Gasp” revealed the particles for the first time in our Woven Studio, everyone was shocked. Turning data into something tangible is something key to helping understand what is happening to our planet.”
The artworks are built upon the resources of the WHO. They indicate how many PM2.5 particles, the dangerous size that stays in your lungs, are around you. It shows what is “healthy” or “hazardous,” and shockingly how much time of your life is being deducted from your life expectancy if you would live inside this area for a longer time.[2]
“One of the visitors that encountered the works used it as a conversation starter with her kids in a way that beats every scientific report. While the kids where running between the visualisation of the forest and the nearby road they kept shouting how low the forest pollution was and how high it was in the street they where living in.”
"GASP" serves as a magnifying glass, rendering tangible the hazardous particles that permeate our atmosphere. In its mix between science and art, the work acts as a reminder of the pollutants we unknowingly inhale, drawing attention to the significant role of fossil fuels in air pollution and the direct impact it has on our time on this planet.
The way the artwork changes the number of oil drops based on the real pollution levels measured by sensors, shows us that air pollution is always changing. These PM2.5 particles are connected to serious health problems like strokes, heart attacks, and losing memory, leading to the death of 7 million people every year—more than those who died from COVID-19. By bringing real-time data and showing how pollution can shorten our lives, making the invisible danger of dirty air something we can see and want to fix.
"GASP," gets us talking about air pollution and how it really affects our health. This installation puts the dirty air of polluted places side by side with the cleaner air we could have, making us think about the damage every polluted breath does to us. It's a powerful call to action to tackle the pollution that's affecting our health right now.
As 'GASP' magnifies and exposes every pollutive particle you've inhaled. The question now isn't what's in the air, but what will we do about it?
Build upon data of
Artist
Thijs Biersteker
Sustainably produced by
Woven Studio
Studio Director
Sophie de Krom
Technical Lead
Thijs Biersteker, Tom Bekkers, Denisa Půbalová
Programming
Tom Bekkers, Denisa Půbalová
3D design and welding
Bastiaan Kennedy
Soundscape
End of Time
Technical Assistants
Theo Rekelhof, Storm van Gils, Robin Vrugt
With special thanks to:
Martin Österberg
WHO team:
Heather Adair-Rohani, Sophie Gumy, Abraham Mwaura, Pierpaolo Mudu
Sources
[1]The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, with nine out of ten people breathing air containing high levels of pollutants.
https://www.who.int/health-topics/air-pollution#tab=tab_1
[2]The WHO highlights the danger of increasingly polluted air due to dirty emissions and a lack of access to clean fuels and technologies, which leads to seven million deaths annually.
https://www.who.int/news-room/spotlight/how-air-pollution-is-destroying-our-health#:~:text=As%20the%20world%20gets%20hotter,7%20million%20people%20every%20year
[3] On PM2.5 particles, Clean Air Resources provides a detailed explanation of PM2.5, mentioning that these particles are made up of chemicals, allergens, dust, smoke, or soil in the form of microscopic solids, gases, or liquids. These particles, often resulting from the burning of fossil fuels, pose significant risks to human health and the environment.
https://www.cleanairresources.com/resources/what-is-pm-2-point-5-and-why-does-it-matter
PM 2.5
Air pollution, particularly PM2.5, poses significant risks to human health. These tiny particles penetrate deep into the lungs and bloodstream, causing inflammation, constriction of blood vessels, and potential clot formation. This can lead to stroke, heart attack, and cognitive decline, with links to Alzheimer's and dementia. Persistent exposure to PM2.5 reduces global life expectancy by 2.2 years on average. Decreasing PM2.5 levels and investing in renewable energy can substantially improv
Air pollution, a significant global environmental challenge, has numerous adverse impacts on human health. One of the most harmful components of air pollution is PM2.5, which consists of fine particles with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometres. These particles, which are roughly 3% the diameter of a human hair, can easily penetrate deep into the respiratory system, causing a myriad of health issues. They arise from various sources, including vehicle emissions, industrial processes, and the combustion of fossil fuels for energy production.
PM2.5 particles infiltrate the lungs' alveoli, where the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide between the air and the bloodstream occurs. Once they enter the bloodstream, these particles cause inflammation and constriction of blood vessels and may dislodge fatty plaque. This can lead to increased blood pressure, clots, and potential blockage of blood flow to vital organs like the heart and brain, ultimately causing strokes or heart attacks. Furthermore, PM2.5 has been associated with reduced cognitive function, accelerated brain ageing, and damage to the brain's white matter, which facilitates communication between different brain regions. White matter damage has been linked to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and dementia.
The Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) estimates that if current particulate pollution levels persist, the global population will lose a total of 16.9 billion years of life directly due to particulate pollution, with the average person losing about 2.2 years of life.
However, if particulate pollution worldwide were reduced to the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline of 10 μg/m3, the global average life expectancy at birth would increase by 2.2 years to approximately 75 years.
A study by Schwartz et al. from Harvard University found that 23.5% of the Medicare population would die before 76 years of age if exposed to PM2.5 at 12 μg/m3, compared with 20.1% if exposed to an annual average of 7.5 μg/m3.
Another study by Rodriguez-Alvarez from the University of Oviedo highlighted that a 1% increase in PM2.5 concentration led to a decrease in potential life expectancy by 4.5 months on average.
To mitigate the adverse health effects of air pollution, a shift towards sustainable energy and transportation is essential. This includes the adoption of renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, and hydropower, which produce significantly fewer harmful emissions compared to fossil fuels. Moreover, transitioning to electric vehicles (EVs) and improving public transportation can help reduce vehicular emissions.
A study by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) showed that doubling the share of renewables in the global energy mix by 2030 could save millions of lives by reducing air pollution. The European Environment Agency (EEA) found that air pollution causes an estimated 400,000 premature deaths per year in Europe, and switching to renewable energy could play a crucial role in lowering these numbers.
In summary, air pollution, particularly PM2.5, has severe consequences for human health and life expectancy. The transition to sustainable energy sources and transportation can substantially reduce the impacts of air pollution, ultimately leading to improved public health and increased life expectancy.
Sources:
AQLI (Air Quality Life Index): https://aqli.epic.uchicago.edu/
Schwartz, J. D., Wang, Y., Kloog, I., Yitshak-Sade, M., Dominici, F., & Zanobetti, A. (2018). Estimating the Effects of PM2.5 on Life Expectancy Using Causal Modeling Methods. Environmental Epidemiology.
Rodriguez-Alvarez, A. (2017). Air pollution and life expectancy in Europe: Does investment in renewable energy matter? Energy Policy.
International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) (2016). Renewable Energy Benefits: Measuring the Economics.
European Environment Agency (EEA) (2019). Air quality in Europe — 2019 report.
