Lines (57° 59'N, 7° 16'W) is the light installation in the Scottish islands that shows the future awaiting us as a result of global warming: underwater. But it is also an invitation to act and prevent this scenario from becoming reality.
Rising sea levels. Hearing these words, our minds most likely travel to remote places, stopping first at the ever less frozen Arctic and its melting ice, before reaching some island in the middle of the ocean that is the first to suffer the consequences. As for our own European continent, we know from various projections that coastal cities could be submerged — such as the lagoon city and romantic Venice — yet it remains an idea that most people find difficult to grasp in concrete terms. The consequences of global warming, however, are now increasingly visible in every part of the world, even in our own back gardens. So, that small island in the middle of the ocean is in fact a group of Scottish islands, in the United Kingdom.
To make the effects of a changing climate visible, a line of light runs along the coastline of one of the Hebrides, in Scotland, marking where the tide level could reach as a result of rising seas: halfway up the walls of houses, across meadows above small harbours and fences. The installation is called Lines (57° 59'N, 7° 16'W) and was created by two Finnish artists, Pekka Niittyvirta and Timo Aho.
Through this installation, people can better visualise the problem and place themselves within the reality that could come about in a not-so-distant future.Pekka Niittyvirta and Timo Aho, artists
With the aim of exploring the catastrophic impact of our relationship with nature and its long-term effects, the installation seeks to draw attention to how rising seas will affect coastal areas, their inhabitants and land use in the future. "When we started the project we were working on coastal communities. Soon, however, we shifted our focus to the causes and consequences of climate change and tidal movements," the two artists told us.
In particular, the impact on low-lying islands, such as in this case the island of Uist, in the Outer Hebrides. Indeed, life on the island has already been affected by these effects: for example, the Taigh Chearsabhagh arts centre and museum — where the installation is situated — cannot remain where it is because of flooding. The installation Lines (57° 59'N, 7° 16'W) is not static as it might appear, but interacts with tidal changes and, through the use of sensors, activates the LED light lines during periods of high water.
Art has the potential to communicate complex ideas, concepts and scientific data in a way that other means, such as words and graphs, cannot.Pekka Niittyvirta and Timo Aho, artists
In this sense, that line of light serves as a reminder of what we could face if we do not act — quickly and now — on climate. Considering that 8 of the 10 largest cities in the world are located near coastlines, and that sea levels could rise by more than half a metre by 2100 according to data published in the journal Nature, hundreds of thousands of people around the world will be vulnerable to rising sea levels. On the other hand, however, the installation could also represent an invitation — one that urges us to act to prevent the Scottish islands, a symbol of all the islands and coastal communities in the world, from being submerged and disappearing forever.