Digital v/s Physical Art: A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment

Digital v/s Physical Art: A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment, utilized SimaPro to model two systems for a comparative LCA in accordance with ISO 14000 standards. This report conducts a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) comparing the environmental impacts of creating digital and physical art. The study evaluates the impacts in terms of global warming potential, terrestrial ecotoxicity, and human non-carcinogenic toxicity. Digital art creation was modeled using a tablet and stylus, while physical art was represented by acrylic paintings on canvas.

Key Findings:
Global Warming Potential: Physical art exhibits a significantly higher global warming potential (23.2 kg CO2 eq.) compared to digital art (8.6 kg CO2 eq.). This is largely due to the environmental impacts of producing canvases and acrylic paints.
Terrestrial Ecotoxicity: Physical art contributes nearly four times more to terrestrial ecotoxicity than digital art. This impact is driven primarily by the production of brushes, particularly due to copper used in manufacturing.
Human Non-Carcinogenic Toxicity: Physical art also has a larger impact in terms of human non-carcinogenic toxicity, due to the cotton used in canvases and the chemicals in paints.

Sensitivity Analyses:
Changing the material of the canvas from cotton to linen could reduce the environmental impact of physical art, making it more comparable to digital art in some categories.
Increasing the usage of the tablet for professional digital artists slightly increases digital art's environmental impact, but it remains lower than physical art.
Reducing the lifespan of digital devices increases their environmental impact, bringing it closer to physical art but not surpassing it.

Conclusion:
Digital art generally has a lower environmental footprint compared to physical art across all categories studied. The impact of physical art is driven by the materials used, particularly canvases and brushes, while digital art's impact is mainly due to the manufacturing and usage of electronics. The report encourages artists and consumers to consider the environmental impacts of their artistic methods, promoting more sustainable practices.