Artist Statement
Survival: Us or Them?
The heart of my work is in environmental advocacy, exposing the real and devastating effects of microplastic pollution in the world’s oceans after the COVID-19 pandemic. The majority of masks used during the pandemic contain plastics or materials derived from plastic. Consequently, this extensive use of face masks has produced millions of tons of plastic waste in the environment within a short period. With my artwork, I want to raise awareness of the environmental impact caused by face mask wastes and to promote sustainable ways to reduce waste from their widespread usage.
I was inspired to create this project by my daily walk along the beach, where I see all kinds of life and their daily activities. Prior to the pandemic, I always thought to myself: “if everyone is disposing of these single-use face masks then where are they going?”, to which the answer is at the beach. Here disposable masks and plastic gloves are lying around covered in sand or floating in the waves. As a result, my new routine is to walk around the beach and collect as much microplastic as I can to improve the environment for ocean life.
For this project, I took notes, read articles, wrote, and researched places where disposable face masks have the most negative impact on wildlife animals, such as seals, seagulls becoming entangled, and sea turtles have ingested those masks by mistake. Then, I choose to paint the portrait of these animals to illustrate the disturbing truth about improper disposal of masks and the adverse physiological and ecotoxicological effects on wildlife. These portraits reveal that COVID-19 litter, while designed to keep us safe, poses a new plastic threat harming animal around us.