Radiation art: Artist turns Fukushima radiation effects into art to show unseen contamination

A Japanese artist has decided to show the invisible aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

Masamichi Kagaya has paired up with a university professor to help print out the contamination that is normally unseen to the naked eye.

He made regular trips to the exclusion zones and began gathering contaminated items shortly after the release of nuclear material across the area.

For Kagaya, while many call his work art, the works are just his way of showing scientific facts in an easy, visual form.

“Well, certainly by numbers we can understand the levels of radiation. However, without putting it into pictures, it is difficult to understand how and where it is clinging to. That is why we have to put this into a visual image.”

By travelling to the exclusion area, Kagaya has exposed himself to radiation levels of up to ten times the recommend dosage.

Difficult words: aftermath (situation after a disaster), contamination (bad things from radiation), naked eye (when you look without air microscope or other device), exclusion zone (area that people are not allowed to enter), gather (collect), item (thing), cling (be close to).