2020 + Covid

These past months have been challenging to the artistic process. The lack of focus, the isolation, and fear of the unknown have dominated the process of artmaking, though these days have also been marked by introspection, spiritual renewal and a strange optimism that the world has pushed the reset button. Things we valued one year ago may fall by the wayside and leave space for a kinder, more balanced world. For many of us the virus is omnipresent and takes center stage in our decision making, our behavior and our daydreams. These ideas are at the root of the three pieces submitted here, and their very disparity reflects my own journey through this pandemic: a series of stops and starts, but a clear understanding that the art wants to emerge through my experience.

The photograph is part of a series of altered landscapes illustrating the ubiquitous image of the virus and its influence over our environment. The needlepoint of the Coronavirus illustration is an appropriation of the image to gain some power over it, and the hours spent with the needle and thread represent an effort to confront the fear of the virus. The installation, “While Nero Golfed” is a comment on our leadership through this crisis; the “Earth” golf ball poised on a golden tee in a crocheted driving range.

Each of these pieces reflects a “revisit” of past methodologies. Through my own evolution as an artist I have focused on the medium of photography but also have a history of creating installations in several gallery exhibitions and a series of needlepoint pieces as well. This revisitation is evidence of the current tendency, during Covid times, to reflect on past accomplishments and modes of artistic communication; to let go of things that aren’t working and focus on those things we wish to keep.