'Plastic Air' by Giorgia Lupi

Explore the impact microplastics are having on the environment and our own health too

By Google Arts & Culture

Giorgia Lupi

Plastic Air (2021) by Giorgia Lupi

What happens to plastic when we dispose of it?

Plastic degrades into smaller and smaller pieces called microplastics which then end up within the air we breathe.

Plastic Air - future view (2021) by Giorgia Lupi and 2021

Data artist Giorgia Lupi visualises these particles, giving you a lens through which to ‘see’ and to explore the plastic particles that are ever-present in the atmosphere around you.

Giorgia Lupi - Data Artist (2021) by Jake Chessum

Giorgia Lupi (Pentagram)

Giorgia Lupi is an Italian information designer whose work takes a humanistic approach to data. In her practice, she challenges the impersonality of data, designing engaging visual narratives that reconnect numbers to what they stand for: stories, people, ideas.

The artist reveals more about her artwork...

Plastic Air - plastic items (2021) by Giorgia Lupi

Plastic Air - Why Microplastics?
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Why did you choose to focus on microplastics?

“Microplastics are a major environmental issue. They affect every living thing on this planet, and it's a type of pollution that has real, long term effects on our planet. Yet because airborne microplastics are so tiny, most people are unaware of them.”

Plastic Air - Sketch (2021) by Giorgia Lupi

Plastic Air - the research
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What was your process behind the work?

“Our process always starts with data. To start a project, we work as researchers to identify what data exists about a certain topic, even if that data isn’t in a readily visualizable form."

Launch the experiment and explore more digital artworks interpreting climate data.

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
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Culture Meets Climate
Bringing artists, scientists, and museums together to reimagine climate data
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