Make It
How does this artist capture the impact of toxins on the natural environment?
Introduction
Baatarzorig Batjargal’s painting requires up close and careful study to appreciate its full impact. (You can find a zoomable, high-resolution image of the painting here.) The Buddhist bodhisattva Vajrapani is the central figure on the canvas, which echoes the form of traditional thanka paintings. Bits of color and detail peek out from behind what look like clouds of gray smoke that obscure the canvas, leaving behind traces of dripping paint. As you look closer, more figures begin to materialize, some clearly human, others more like human-animal hybrids. Batjargal blends motifs from a variety of sources, including traditional Buddhist painting, political satire, social criticism, and pop culture. Smoke expresses the artist’s concern with the loss of traditional Mongolian heritage due to various sociopolitical and cultural influences, including Soviet-style communism and U.S.-style consumerist culture. He also explores the ways in which these forces led to economic growth and development in the region that negatively impacted the natural environment.
If you look at the several pink areas across the canvas, you will find geometric shapes with notations including SO2, CO2, CH4, and N2O (sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrogen oxide respectively). Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar, is known for having the highest levels of air pollution in the world; it is caused by high rates of burning coal (used to heat homes) and the rising number of citizens abandoning their nomadic lifestyles to seek economic opportunities in the city. The result has been a public health crisis for its citizens. Batjargal’s painting raises questions about what it means to sustain ties to cultural traditions in the face of external political forces and rapidly developing environmental crises.
Batjargal Baatarzorig
Baatarzorig Batjargal was born in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in 1983. A rising star in the contemporary art scene in Mongolia, he is known for his innovative approach to “Mongol zurag” (literally, “Mongolian picture”), a style of painting rooted in Buddhist pictorial tradition that uses techniques based on Tibetan thanka paintings. Batjargal has expanded the scope of zurag painting to incorporate a broader collection of styles and references in his portrayal of urban development and globalization, modern life, political affairs, and pop culture. The tradition of Mongolian zurag was important for Mongolian artists in maintaining their cultural identity during the period of socialism in the twentieth century. Mongolia, as a country sandwiched between China and Russia, has been shaped by sociopolitical and cultural influences from both neighboring countries. Mongolia’s largest city and capital, Ulaanbaatar (in English, “Red Hero”), was founded as a Buddhist monastic center named Urga until it was conquered and renamed by Soviet Russian forces in 1924.
© Courtesy the Artist and Jack Bell Gallery, London.
Try It!
Learners can work individually or as a class to create a graphic organizer or mind map that illustrates the complexity of the relationship between air pollution and their daily lives. Conduct a simple brainstorming session and then map out concepts and connections, arranging them to show the relationships among various factors. Then, have students identify their favorite place in the world and one defining feature or landmark of that place. Create an illustration, digitally or on paper, making this feature or landmark the central part. Encourage students to add details and make modifications to their image to show the real and/or future potential impacts of pollution on their favorite place.
Time: 30 min. or up to 2 class periods
Materials: Paper, drawing and coloring utensils. (For advanced makers, this activity can be adapted to work with graphic design, illustration, and/or photo-editing software apps.)
Guiding Questions:
How does air pollution affect our homes, communities, and natural environment?How do the decisions we make either reduce or add to sources of pollution?
You can use Project Zero’s Global Thinking Routine, “The Three Whys” to structure a conversation about the impacts of air pollution locally and globally:
Why might this [topic, question] matter to me?
Why might it matter to people around me [family, friends, city, nation]?
Why might it matter to the world?
Do It!
Before starting this activity, it may be helpful for students to begin with an introduction to air pollution. For example, this video by Learning Junction explains air pollution in a kid-friendly format.
Using a permanent marker, label each of the plates with the name of a different location around the school and/or at students’ homes. Try to choose a variety of locations both indoors and outdoors. It is up to you to determine how many total locations to track.
Once the plates have been labeled, spread a thin layer of petroleum jelly on each one. Tape or glue the plates to a spot in their respective locations. Wait several days, then collect them all on the same day and bring them back to the classroom for inspection. Place the plates on blank pieces of paper and let students use a magnifying glass to view and observe the different particles that were captured at each of the locations. What kinds of particles can students find? How do the plates differ based on their locations? What does this tell us about air quality at each of the locations?
For more information, lessons, and activities relating to teaching about air pollution in K–12 classrooms, check out this curricular unit on air pollution created by TeachEngineering from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Another online resource, AirNow, shows data from the U.S. Air Quality Index and allows you to type in your zip code, city, or state and see the air quality where you live.
Time: 1 to 3 class periods
Materials: Clear plastic plates, permanent markers, petroleum jelly, tape or adhesive, blank white paper, magnifying glass
Guiding Questions:
What is the scientific definition of air?What is the definition of a pollutant? What are some examples of pollutants found in the air where you live? What are their sources?
Make It Yours!
Design Challenge
Baatarzorig Batjargal’s painting gets us thinking about the environmental and cultural costs of pollution; your design challenge is to envision solutions for a cleaner future! Follow the design-thinking process below as outlined in this lesson, “What is the connection between design-thinking and art?”
Time: 3 or more class periods
Design-Thinking Process
- 1
Empathize: Learn about the artist’s background and work using the information in this lesson, then watch the mini documentary “Dying to Breathe: Mongolia’s Polluted Air” and read this NPR article, “Mongolia’s Capital Banned Coal to Fix Its Pollution Problem. Will It Work?” How does Smoke illustrate the environmental concerns of the artist?
- 2
Connect: Use local news sources, reach out to city and county offices, and make observations of your world to identify and research environmental concerns unique to your home or school. What industries are currently part of your local community’s economy? How have these industries impacted the health of the environment?
- 3
Ideate: Create teams based on shared interest in an environmental concern. Have teams brainstorm a few ideas for solutions to the problem and determine the final idea they will take into design.
- 4
Prototype: Sketch your solution and make a rough prototype. Discuss within your team and identify improvements that can be made. Make improvements and create a final version.
- 5
Test: Share the final designs with the class, school, and community. Connect with local businesses and environmental organizations or other local community partners to review and give feedback on the final products. End with a reflection: “If you were to do this again, what would you do differently, and why?” Solicit constructive feedback from peers and reviewers; from their perspectives, what worked well, what made this idea compelling, and what could have been improved?