Project Red Hot is a visual dialogue between the future, and the present. Global warming is no longer a theory, it is evident in many of the world’s natural events now. But, human activities are not adjusting to the need of time, probably because most of us are aware of the situation, but we do not see it happening in our daily lives. Therefore, this photography Project, uses thermal photography as a tool for social documentation, taking it out from scientific researches only, and bringing it in the quotidian.
Global warming is in news since a long time. Joseph Fourier, in 1824 suggested that an Earth sized planet, at the location where our Earth is situation in the solar system, should be a lot colder, but if it is not, means that there is something in the atmosphere which functions as insulator. 1856, Eunice Foote confirmed the trapping of infrared radiation by carbon dioxide and water vapours in the atmosphere. Later, physicist John Tyndall in 1860, connected the dots and recognised the Earth's natural greenhouse effect, and the relation between the atmospheric composition and climate variations. This was further confirmed by Svante Arrhenius in 1896 and, Guy Calendar in 1938, connecting carbon dioxide to global warming. Ultimately, Gilbert Plass formulated the carbon dioxide theory of climate change in 1956.
Although, the United Nations in 1972, intended to bring climate and environmental concerns to forefront at the first UN conference on the human environment, at Stockholm, creating various bodies, and suggesting approaches of mitigation, almost two decades passed before a global consensus was seen on the matter. In 1992 at the Earth Summit of Rio de Janeiro - Brazil, the need for change in human activities on the planet was acknowledged. The journey has gone from Rio to Koyoto via Cancun. Goals were set by the heads of the states, but not all the countries dedicated themselves to the actions required to achieve the goals. The result is that, we are still miles away from a sustainable model of economic activities, which can benefit the whole planet, where natural resources, and vital elements for sustaining life, are finite.
In this path, often we miss the most powerful aspect of any economic model; the people. During COVID-19 pandemic, we realized that even the breaths that we take are connected to the whole planet. Now, keeping a check on body temperature is normal. Our thermal signature, became the benchmark of our physical health. Before entering any building, in most cases, now we must present ourselves to the infrared thermometer. Similarly, the temperature regulation on the planet, is also one of the benchmark of its health. While the effects of global warming are clearly evident, the occurrence of before and after situation, spreads across two or more generations. Therefore, the current economically active population somehow lives in sublime oblivion, where the available statistical information doesn’t seem to correlate with the daily life’s visual information, even though, it does correlate perfectly through scientific analysis. This gap between visual information, and the actuality of climate situation often dictates consumer behaviour. Especially in urban centres, this disconnect seems to be bigger. And, it is in the urban centres, we see either the activities affecting the climate, or the policy formation regarding that.
Keeping this in mind, the idea of this Project, emerged from this common quality that we share with our home planet; the temperature regulation. Taking in account the spectrum of light, non visible to human eye, the Project Red Hot intend to connect fresh memories of checking body temperature regularly during COVID-19 pandemic, with the planet itself. The geographical location of the project is India, more specifically New Delhi, which is among the most populated and polluted urban centres in the world. The tones of thermal imagery, the recording of temperature data on the image file, and the subjects chosen to photograph, are symbolic representation of the otherwise hidden side, shade, and severity of the present reality, indicating towards a possibility in future, if we do not start acting today as a global society.