Carrie Grubb
1(100watt) Incandescent bulb= 208.5 lbs coal
Coal, (100 watt) Incandescent light bulb
2012
“Coal is mean, coal’s cruel and coal kills. The American people need to find their position, you’re connected to coal whether you realize it or not; everybody’s connected to this.”
-Maria Gunnoe
Coal, one of the most central forms of fuel, is primarily used today to produce electricity throughout the United States and around the world. However, since the mid-1990’s coal has been mined through a practice known as Mountaintop Removal Mining, a process where coal companies blast roughly 500-800ft off the top of mountains to reach the coal beneath; a much faster and cheaper form of mining while continuously destroying hundreds of mountains, contaminating communities drinking supplies, creating severe flooding and endangering numerous species and wildlife.
Global warming and environmental awareness is prevalent now more than ever, raising questions and asking communities to take action to save our environment. This piece was created to ask a very simple yet important question to the viewer- How am I connected to coal? I have taken the simplest item every common household uses in their day to day routine, the light bulb and juxtaposed it with the exact amount of coal that is needed to power one (100 watt) Incandescent light bulb through its full life expectancy, roughly 42 days.
1(100watt) Incandescent bulb= 208.5 lbs coal
Coal, (100 watt) Incandescent light bulb
2012
“Coal is mean, coal’s cruel and coal kills. The American people need to find their position, you’re connected to coal whether you realize it or not; everybody’s connected to this.”
-Maria Gunnoe
Coal, one of the most central forms of fuel, is primarily used today to produce electricity throughout the United States and around the world. However, since the mid-1990’s coal has been mined through a practice known as Mountaintop Removal Mining, a process where coal companies blast roughly 500-800ft off the top of mountains to reach the coal beneath; a much faster and cheaper form of mining while continuously destroying hundreds of mountains, contaminating communities drinking supplies, creating severe flooding and endangering numerous species and wildlife.
Global warming and environmental awareness is prevalent now more than ever, raising questions and asking communities to take action to save our environment. This piece was created to ask a very simple yet important question to the viewer- How am I connected to coal? I have taken the simplest item every common household uses in their day to day routine, the light bulb and juxtaposed it with the exact amount of coal that is needed to power one (100 watt) Incandescent light bulb through its full life expectancy, roughly 42 days.