Adviser: Jason Paradis
2020001M “Together in Isolation”
Project URL: https://coronaartist.gallery/
This project is comprised of crowd-sourced photographs gathered from people impacted by the coronavirus, COVID-19. It will examine those who are social distancing, in quarantine, and sheltered in place. The goal is to create a snapshot of the changes this pandemic has wrought on our lives, and the coping mechanisms that people are exercising daily to deal with our world in isolation. As with many of my works, this project deals with mental health and the impact of specific events on one’s life, and how that initiates certain coping mechanisms.
The photographs are arranged in a cascading mosaic displayed on the website https://coronaartist.gallery/, allowing the viewer to scroll endlessly through the submissions. The work will continue to grow as submissions will remain open to add to the gallery. The website is a single work of art with only one active page. An external link will lead to information about the artist, for those interested.
The work is also meant to be displayed in a physical gallery space. The collected images would be printed in varying sizes, but all of them would have the same width. They will be hung with minimal space between each image to imitate the online format. The exhibition is meant to be overwhelming, but should still allow the viewer to focus on each image. Ideally, the physical display would use all gallery walls, including the ceiling and floor, to immerse the viewer within the photographs. This immersion should mimic how the pandemic has infiltrated every aspect of our lives, but the flat, two dimensional format of the mosaiced photographs will show the importance of digital communication during isolation by imitating the format of our digital screens.
The experience of gathering images was challenging mentally. I did not filter the images as they were submitted, and let everyone express whatever they were feeling at that moment. Many of the pictures show personal protective equipment in use while people move about their daily lives, as well as activities used to stave off boredom, and a plethora of memes. It seems as though many of us are attempting to cope with this dramatic social shift through humor, and busying our minds to not fully acknowledge or deal with the long lasting impact that this will, no doubt, carry into the future.