Monthly Archives: May 2001

Change in Drought Conditions 旱情變化指數

This map shows the change in drought severity all over the world – the world has gone drier as a whole, but drought and precipitation over different areas polarized and intensified, thus adding pressure to the availability of clean water especially for disadvantaged places.

Participants were invited to add their stories or things they knew about water to the map.

這圖顯示了全球的雨量/旱情變化情況 – 總的來說地球的降雨在急劇減少的同時在重新分佈。嚴重的旱與澇相繼頻繁, 使清潔水源帶來了壓力, 特別是資源較少的地區。

參加者被邀請獲在地圖上寫上自己知道的與水有關水的故事, 來豐富我們對水的感情和認知。

1/6384 The Last Words of a Coal Miner 一名礦工的遺言

In the year 2003, 6348 coal mining casualties were officially reported. Estimated unreported death in private mines might be its double.  Nièqingwen was among those who lost his life in Hunan. Knowing his fate ahead after his mine collapsed, he wrote his last words on his helmet during his last hours in the mine.

On the outside of the helmet: It is difficult to say goodbye to my love ones; I owe my mother 200 Yuan; and Deng 100 Yuan. Inside the helmet, he addressed his wife: JianJiang, take care of the young ones, and be good to parents. Be sure your good acts will be rewarded. He also wrote about his guarantee deposit and salary he had with his company.

His last words were carbon-copied onto the white mugs which required lots of energy in their production.

2003, 6348名礦工在礦難中死亡。如果包括瞞報和私有礦場數字,總人數會倍增。聶清文便是在那年在湖南礦井賠上了生命,當知道自己將與死神握手,在他的安全帽上寫下他給家人最後的思念和交帶。

帽外用粉筆寫著:骨肉親情情難舍……欠我娘200元,欠鄧曙華100元。帽裏側是寫給妻子最後的交代:建章,教育好兒女,孝敬父母,將來定有好報。一定要火葬!還有便是公司的押金和工資。

他的最後留言現抄寫在高秏能的陶製杯。

 

 

red coal @ commune

IMG_4236bChina is the biggest coal producer in the world. She also topped the world in the number of mining accidents and deatheven though situation has improved. The day when this conception was first put up in January, 2011, 125 miners were trapped in a mine in HeiLongJiang, and the year finished with a total casualty of 1973. While the situation is improving, as compares to over 7000 casualties (official record, civic estimation that this could be doubled) 15 years ago,  it still covers 80% of the world’s figure.  No doubt, China’s rampaging economy as the world’s factory is inevitable rested on the blood spilled in the blood coal. Materials: coal ashes, sand, coal, coal cakes, red cloth. On each coal cake marked the day of a coal mine accident and casualty number of 2010. 中國是煤產大國,即使情況近年已有改善,亦依然是煤礦意外大國, 佔世界8成總量。當這個概念作品在2011年1月製作當時,便有125名礦工於一黑龍江被困, 那年1973名礦工在意外中死亡。這數字雖比15年前7000的官方死數字低了很多, 但中國作為世界工廠的在急步發展,實是建立在血煤之上。 物料:煤灰、炭塊、煤餅、砂、紅布。每塊煤餅上都刻上了去年礦難的日期和傷亡數字。

Quench解渴 @ Cattle Depot牛棚

While water is traded and consumed as commodities to quench our thirst, there are dire consequences often left untold. 當水變成商品之後, 背後的故事有多少人知道…. In cities, there is an increasing demand for bottled water and other bottled drinks, marketed as “safer” and higher classby corporations that suck up aquifers andsprings which kept from their consumers that they are often privatizing the water sources, depleting and polluting groundwater to elicit dire ecological and social consequences. These include displacement of the local dwellers, humans and all. For humans, wrecking of agro-communities, health and intensified poverty, especially in places where suchacts are either looselyor not regulated. Women, lower in status and chief care takers of their families are often receiving the hardest hit, some may be sold or trafficked to as force-labor or to quench sexual desires of others.The trafficking situation is worsening as the water situation deteriorates, while the politicalecological-economic power gap widens across the global and within nationstates.Yet, these women’s voices are silenced, unheard.  The picture inserted in these bottled water is a women of color, naked, blinded, tied and gagged. 當樽裝水和其他商品飲料被推銷為安全純淨和高檔而銷售在節節上升的時候,它們原產地的源泉和地下水除被私有化及徵用外,其情況也是在每況愈下,一邊被抽乾,一邊被污染,附隨而來的是嚴重的生態及社會後果。對當地的居民而言,則包括其農產及社區被破壞,健康變差和加劇貧窮,特別是對汲水活動不制約的地區。而女性,在地位不尊和要照顧家庭的情況下,往往首當其衝。其中更不幸者是被人擄拐貶賣至被迫作苦工或供人洩慾。 隨著全球的清潔水源越趨貧乏及政治經濟–生態的權力分配兩極化,貧窮和擄拐貶賣的情況在靜悄悄加劇。困在樽裝水裏的是一幀被暴露、綑縛、蒙眼和封口有色人種的女性。

Two Elements 二元 (full)

Coal Ash Landscape: No Birds 煤灰地域: 無鳥

 Coal ash dump at Castle Peak, Hong Kong. The mercury and arsenic contents, though are within limits,  but washed down and accumulated, the pond becomes a bowl of toxic soup.

香港青山電廠附近的煤灰湖。煤灰的水銀和鉮都在限內,但積聚的潭水卻是一碗毒湯。