SULFUR COLLECTORS
Kawa-Ijen Volcano, Indonesia. 2009
Kawa-Ijen Volcano has an established reputation as a stunning view in Java, Indonesia. However, amid the natural beauty, concealed by the dust and clouds of sulfuric gas, there are men who painstakingly work to collect sulfur from a crater in the volcano. With breath held and mouths stuffed with towels they make their regular collections. Every day the gatherers walk 12km while carrying a staggering 70-100kg of sulfur on their backs. Despite the hazardous conditions and brutal nature of the work these men earn a mere 10 U.S. dollars per day for their labor.
We are rarely concerned with where the products we consume come from, who is making them, and in which conditions the materials are collected. In all actuality there are many whose lives are poured out to produce goods for our consumption. We may never see their faces, but it’s essential that we do not remain ignorant of their sacrifice.
I had begun to think about the origin of the products most widely consumed. I started to wonder about the products manufactured from sulfur and other consumable resources. It is difficult to imagine a world without products manufactured from the raw materials from which our modern technological and mechanical advances are made possible. It’s for this reason that I set out to shed light on the lives of those who sacrifice daily in the sulfur mines for our progression. These men sustain our standards of normality, but their contribution far outweighs our consideration and dwarfs our compassion.
FESTIVAL
Pluie d’images 2015
Mineurs de soufre de Lee Daesung
Through February 27th 2015
Médiathèque de St Marc
Place Vinet
29200 Brest
Tél. 02 98 00 89 80
