Thermal Imaging (2022) is a painting based on a sourced image captured through a thermal imaging camera during the COVID-19 pandemic at an airport security checkpoint. In the center of the composition, two pedestrians wearing masks are highlighted, while a color legend in the bottom left corner corresponds to a scale of temperatures. The “plus” sign visible on the image signifies an artificial intelligence system actively detecting the body temperature of each individual.

The painting employs a vivid palette to represent heat levels that the human eye cannot perceive, offering a visual interpretation of this otherwise invisible phenomenon. Through this work, Tan Mu reflects on how technological advancements, such as thermal imaging and AI, have been integrated into public health monitoring. It captures the tension between the necessity of surveillance and the alienating experience of being observed and measured during a global crisis.

Q: What drew you to use thermal imaging as the subject of this painting?

Tan Mu: I was drawn to thermal imaging because it translates something deeply intimate and physical into a visual language mediated by machines. Thermal cameras convert body heat into color, turning temperature into information. During the COVID 19 pandemic, temperature became a critical indicator of health, and technologies such as thermal imaging, AI detection, and automated monitoring were rapidly deployed in public spaces. The image that inspired this work was taken at an airport security checkpoint, captured through an infrared thermal camera.

At the same time, thermal imaging represents a form of disconnection. Technology mediates our perception, transforming the tactile sensation of warmth into a purely visual experience. Through this translation, I wanted to explore the tension between the technological representation of the human body and the sensory reality it replaces.

Q: How do you translate the data driven visuals of thermal imaging into a painterly language?

Tan Mu: I retained several symbolic elements from the original technological image. The crosshair in the composition represents an AI system actively detecting and recording body temperature, while the gradient color bar in the lower corner corresponds to thermal ranges used for classification and measurement.

The painting is dominated by dark and cool tones, with purple, blue, and black forming the primary visual field. Warmer colors such as red and orange appear selectively, creating sharp contrast and directing attention to temperature differences between bodies and their surroundings. The figures are rendered in a loose, semi figurative manner. Visible brushstrokes soften their contours, allowing the bodies to appear fluid and unstable rather than fixed, mirroring how technology abstracts the human presence into data.

Q: How does this work reflect your ongoing exploration of the visible and the invisible?

Tan Mu: This painting exists at the intersection of what can be seen and what normally remains invisible. Thermal imaging makes the invisible visible by translating bodily heat into color. Through painting, I reinterpret this technological vision, combining recognizable symbols with abstraction to reveal the systems operating beneath the surface.

Beyond the literal imagery, the work also engages with invisible forces such as emotion, energy flow, and balance. Through color relationships and composition, I aim to suggest underlying structures that shape human experience but cannot be directly observed. By balancing figurative elements with abstraction, the painting reflects a way of seeing the world that acknowledges both surface appearances and hidden patterns.

Q: How do you see technological advancement affecting our senses, individuality, and privacy?

Tan Mu: I see technology as a deeply social system that reshapes how we perceive and interact with the world. One of the most profound changes has been the expansion and integration of our senses. Technologies like thermal imaging allow tactile sensations such as temperature to be perceived visually. Before these tools existed, temperature could only be felt through direct bodily experience. Now it appears as data, numbers, or color coded maps.

At the same time, this expansion raises serious questions about privacy. Thermal imaging and AI systems capture intimate bodily data and display it in public contexts. In this work, the blurred figures in the background reference airport security procedures, subtly pointing to the exposure of private information within public spaces. This concern connects closely to my Privacy works, where I explore data protection and informational vulnerability. Through these paintings, I reflect on how technological progress simultaneously extends human perception and erodes the boundaries between private and public life.