Subliminal Suicide
FINER THAN A HUMAN HAIR
사람의 머리카락보다 미세한 [mise-munji]
Media Studies Project, Royal College of Art, 2019
Tutor : Ifor Duncan
Particulate
matter
Toxic
Haze
Fine
Particulate matter
Fine
Dust
Ultrafine
Dust
미세먼지
These
are the words that we often encounter in South Korean daily news. Particulate
matter, called 미세먼지
(mise
munji), has been a very serious matterin South Korea for the past few years and around the world.
Particulate
Matter (PM) is a microscopic solid or liquid matter suspended in the air
composed of ion elements, Carbon Compounds and Metal elements. According to the
report of the World Atmospheric Annual Report by US Institute of Health and
Environmental Affairs, Korea’s annual average of ultrafine dust (PM2.5) has
increased in 2015 becoming seventh worst air pollution worldwide.
Particulate
matter is systematized by picometer, also shortened as PM.
Human
hair is around 50 to 70 picometer which is around 0.005mm-0.007mm when
converted to familiar unit. Dust particles are PM10, 5-7times smaller than
human hair, which is an inhalable dust built around dust, pollen, mold and etc.
Then there’s PM2.5 which is the fine particles. They can be deposited in deeper
lung and stored up to a week. Ultra fine particles are PM0.1 which can be
passed into our circulatory system causing general health issues such as,
headache and dizziness, skin disease, eye disease which eventually leads to
rhinitis, asthma, sinusitis, pneumonia, vascular disease and etc.
We
can track the air quality through Air Visual website or simply on daily weather
pages to prevent from outdoor activities. It is highly recommended to wear fine
dust filter masks for bad days. We are trying to avoid the toxic haze and from
the outcome it will bring.
PM is
caused by industrial facilities that drift on the prevailing winds across the
Yellow Sea from China, power plants and emissions from vehicles. The particles
are tangled in the moisture of the air causing smog, blocking view of the
landscape or city scape as seen in the photo above. Exhaust from car, bus and
all types of vehicles effect the analysis of the particulate matter and worsen
the influence.
PM is caused by industrial facilities that drift on the prevailing winds across the Yellow Sea from China, power plants and emissions from vehicles. The particles are tangled in the moisture of the air causing smog, blocking view of the landscape or city scape as seen in the photo above. Exhaust from car, bus and all types of vehicles effect the analysis of the particulate matter and worsen the influence.
Shortly
after creating the photo collage of everyday sky, noticed that each photo was
taken inside vehicle. Even though there are campaigns and news suggesting us to
reduce the use, and stay in safe, we are unconsciously making the same mistakes
over and over again.
With the
research of the particulate matter comparing to the human hair, I installed 1:1
scaled photo projected installation. Human hair as a threshold to particulate
matter, I filled the space with a fine thread representing the dust particles.
With the collection of Seoul sky photographs being projected onto a three-dimensional
space, it built the interior of a car, to communicate the seriousness and the
cause of the problem we are constantly creating. I perceived that many people
in Seoul and around the world, including myself, are not so much aware of the
emergency of the catastrophe, and that this installation could alert people to
consider about this issue more seriously.
Therefore,
I can tell that this installation is strong message for all of us who are
scared of illness, disease and death, but taking no action to prevent.
With the research of the particulate matter comparing to the human hair, I installed 1:1 scaled photo projected installation. Human hair as a threshold to particulate matter, I filled the space with a fine thread representing the dust particles. With the collection of Seoul sky photographs being projected onto a three-dimensional space, it built the interior of a car, to communicate the seriousness and the cause of the problem we are constantly creating. I perceived that many people in Seoul and around the world, including myself, are not so much aware of the emergency of the catastrophe, and that this installation could alert people to consider about this issue more seriously.
Therefore, I can tell that this installation is strong message for all of us who are scared of illness, disease and death, but taking no action to prevent.
Appendix
![]()
Image source: Namu wiki/ Particulate Matter (Atmospheric satellite image on the day of the January 14, 2019 ultra-fine dust emergency reduction measure)
![]()
Image Source :Screen shot from the youtube chanel explaning the real time situation in South Korea
![]()
Image source: Bliss Airpage describing the effects of the toxic haze to human body
Image source: Namu wiki/ Particulate Matter (Atmospheric satellite image on the day of the January 14, 2019 ultra-fine dust emergency reduction measure)
Image Source :Screen shot from the youtube chanel explaning the real time situation in South Korea
Image source: Bliss Airpage describing the effects of the toxic haze to human body