While COVID-19 has put many things around us on a standstill, art continues to foster. In this extended lockdown, Kochi Muziris Biennale (KMB) asked artists to share artworks they created in their homes/studios. Through these artworks, as displayed on the KMB’s social media platforms, one can engage in a number of impressions expressed by the artists.
"The series was based on a simple question – what are artists creating during the lockdown? We approached artist friends to send us images on what they are doing, not necessarily finished works, but sketches, proposals, photos, idea-maps, etc. The idea is to share with our online community how artists continue to work during this situation," says Bose Krishnamachari, co-founder, KMB.
For instance, Delhi-based artist Gagan Singh has layered his drawings with wordplay, while Tanya Goel’s video and paintings portray her depiction of the fear engulfing us all. Goel, in a conversation with The Morning Standard, reveals that she converted a new project, which was supposed to be a site-specific installation, into a virtual and interactive experience, given the need of the hour.
She further talks about a video project, The Virus in the Air, is Abstract, which she made during this period. 'Since my larger practice is about abstraction, it was interesting for me to look at this virus as also a form of abstraction.The video features overgrown weeds embedded with ambient sounds. If we zoom into these overgrown weeds, they somewhat appear like the virus, and the ambient sounds capture the anxiety of a situation."
Browsing through many artworks by fellow artists during this period, says Goel, has both mirrored and healed her anxieties about the art scene. "If one did not have films, literature, music or images to look at, a life lived without these things would be simply difficult. And looking at a number of artworks has simply been cathartic."