The Face Mask
How face masks play an important role in the background of health and environmeltal issues, fashion and the publicity.
07-2020 // by ROMAN
This blog post is about my trip to Korea in 2019 and how I got inspired by the things and people there. Before that, I didn’t have a specific topic that I wanted to pay special attention to in terms of photography. But once I was there and had my first encounters with the people, it was immediately obvious to me.
When I travelled to Korea for two weeks in March 2019 it was clear to me that I wanted to dedicate the time explicitly to photography. In the first instance, the visit was a chance to visit my best friend Jake, as he was temporarily working in Seoul for a start up in the crypto currency scene. However, I knew that I would be travelling alone for some time and could therefore take on a particular project regarding my photography. So I thought about it and started to do some research about Korea.
Of course there are countless topics to focus on in Korea. But at the beginning two topics came directly into my head, which might be a bit irritating. I had heard that Korea has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. However, I gave up the idea very quickly, because the topic seemed to me much too grotesque and private. The second rather unusual idea I had with the topic of the birth rate. But how could I document this photographically? I didn’t have direct access to this topic and before I knew it, I was landing at Incheon airport near Seoul.
Already on the way to the hostel I noticed that for my experience an unusual number of people wore a face mask (mouth and nose protection). My direct impression was also proven again during my first exploring tours in the popular Hongdae district. Probably every third person wore a face mask in different designs. Since I had not been in Asia very much and had no other experiences with the topic, this was a very unusual picture for me. Somehow it became clear to me that the topic “face mask” should be a big aspect of my photographic work in Korea.
I immediately began to ask people who wore a face mask whether I was allowed to photograph them. I told them that wearing a mask in public was an unusual sight for me as a European. The rate of successful photos was about 30% in the first days and in Seoul. Many people did not feel like posing for a curious photographer. The other part, however, mostly reacted very positively and was even happy when I asked them for a photo. They were mostly very curious about me and the photos and we had longer conversations.
I also found out why the people wore the mouthguard at all. Here 95% of the discussions were about the topic of air pollution by finest aerosols and the resulting health burden. During my subsequent research I was able to find out more information. In Seoul and Korea respectively, there is a high rate of air pollution. On certain days, this leads to an increased reduction of visibility and is so strong that the influences are harmful to health. On the one hand, the high level of air pollution is due to the fact that Korea is still relying increasingly on fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas for its energy supply. On the other hand, the air pollution is not Korea’s own fault, but the result of the fossil burning of another country – China. As China still relies heavily on fossil fuels, the air quality on the east coast is usually poor. Depending on the weather conditions, the fine dust particles fly over to Korea, which also worsens the air quality there.
So I also learned why so many people wore masks and in the meantime I made more encounters on the street. During the exploratory tours in Seoul, however, another aspect became increasingly evident to me. The face masks were worn not only for protection but also for fashion reasons. This means that if a mask has to be worn, it should best match the outfit, right?
Hence there were not only the clinically and almost repulsive surgical mouth-nose masks in people’s faces, but also stylishly cut masks in a wide variety of designs and colors. I would say the standard mask in Korea is plain and black. Black usually matches the outfit. But there were also white masks, masks with camouflage pattern, kissing mouths, pikachu and moustache. There were no limits to the creativity in this respect. It was obvious that people had already integrated the mask into their outfit. It even seemed that people were using the mask ONLY for fashion reasons. Wearing a mask to enhance your outfit and look? Sounds weird, but is totally cool in Seoul. Because I didn’t wear a mask most of the time, I even had the impression here and there that people with masks looked down at me from above and thought something like: “Boy, you don’t seem to know what’s good for your health yet”. And they were probably right.
Still, I never lost the feeling that the face mask was taking away parts of a person’s personality. The masks cover most of the face, especially the whole mouth area. It is the mouth area in particular that we need to understand so many important facial expressions, which are very important not only for the outward appearance, but also for our entire communication. The friendly smile on a child’s lips, the cheeky tongue sticking out. Or the corners of the mouth pulled down at a moment of disappointment or sadness. All these facial features are almost completely covered by the mask or at least decisively affected. Since I find this very unfortunate, especially as a photographer, I asked all the people who enriched me with their portrait for two photos. One with face mask and one photo without face mask. I think there are big differences in the effect of the portrait when comparing the two versions with and without face mask. But see for yourself and compare the effect via the “before and after” effect of the pictures.
What do these experiences mean now in the present time of Corona, a little more than a year later?
In Germany, the obligation to wear masks is particularly important for health reasons to suppress COVID-19 diseases. In Germany, we do not have the same problems with air pollution by fine particles as Korea. The background is therefore different. Nevertheless, it is now completely normal in Germany to wear a face mask in public. This is limited to places like public transport or shops. Nevertheless, nobody will look at you strangely when you walk around with a mask. People quickly became creative and sewed their own masks, as the supply via pharmacies and other shops was not sufficiently secured. And so it seems that also in this country people are getting more and more used to wearing the mask. What was quite unusual for me in 2019 is now daily live in 2020 in Germany. Will this feeling now persist, or will the public no longer have to deal with the wearing of face masks in a year’s time?
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