4 year old Henry engaged fully with thick applications of watercolor and oil pastels. He said it was a stormy sea with a small boat. This was at the onset of the pandemic, when we were all a bit uncertain and confined to our homes. I was reminded of an insight by Kierkegaard written in the early 1800s: “When the sailor is out on the sea and everything is changing around him, as the waves are continually being born and dying, he does not stare into the depths of these, since they vary. He looks up at the stars. And why? Because they are faithful – as they stand now, they stood for the patriarchs, and will stand for coming generations. By what means then does he conquer changing conditions? Through the eternal: By means of the eternal, one can conquer the future, because the eternal is the foundation of the future.”
Reflecting on the current pandemic, only to realise things this time last year gave plenty of us something to gripe about too...
How times seemed simpler then.
It's crazy to think that we've been in a pandemic for a year or to think we could ever get used to this new way of life. March 13th, 2020 was the day everything stopped for me: it was the last day I went to school and the last day I went to gymnastics for 5 months. The promise of two weeks' time, something I somewhat desperately held onto. Going into this, no one knew what to expect, it was the first time many of us saw life as we know it stop. Quarantine has definitely taught me a lot emotionally, mentally, and how to reach out and work through (and what bad panic attacks feel like :) ). I think it also goes without saying that I got through most of this because of the people around me, and I can't say enough how grateful I am to be surrounded by such amazing people. So, here I am. Life is still pretty rocky, but it's a process. Thank you to everyone who's been along for the ride so far ❤
It's crazy to think that 6 years have already flown by since I first moved onto the Xcel gymnastics team, let alone the fact that I've spent 15 years of my life as a gymnast. Tomorrow, August 6th, 2021, marks my last day as a gymnast on the team since I'm officially a college student. I've genuinely been dreading this day, but it's not the ending I expected...in an oddly good way. I know no one expected to spend the past year in a pandemic, and I definitely didn't think gym would shift so much in the following months, but here we are. Gymnastics has taught me more than I ever imagined it could, and my coaches (especially one of them) have become two of the people I'm closest with, words can't describe how grateful I am for everything. This 'ending' doesn't feel like an end, more so a closing to this chapter. Honestly, my love for the sport has only grown, and it feels like I'm finally figuring it all out. So, although my final practice as a team member is tomorrow, my journey is not over yet. "Goodbyes are the hardest part, and this ending has been something I’ve been dreading, although I know it’s time to let go. I’d like to say this isn’t a permanent goodbye to you or the sport, it’s more of a natural conclusion. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you’ve done for me and managed to teach me in this short amount of time, I couldn’t have asked for anyone, or anything, better. Thank you most of all for helping me achieve my dreams and for helping me get to a point in which I can say I’m proud of my journey.
All that’s left to say is I care about you, I love you, and take care."
This was drawn in Spiralty (a free Windows program) and colored in Photoshop. Great fun and very relaxing. I am definitely going to be making more mandalas during the rest of the pandemic.
This drawing has gone through several iterations (rough napkin sketch, sketchbook sketch, black and white version, limited colour version). 2021, Bic4 Ballpoint Pen, Novelty 10 Colour Ballpoint Pen on 9” x 12” Archival paper. Model: ImaniZ
Inktober 2020, Day 25: "Buddy".
I thought what better match for the prompt than Stanley Stegosaurus, which my parents got to me when we moved to the US, when I was six. Stanley was a good buddy to me, when I didn’t understand at first the weird language spoken by those American kids. It has also been a good buddy to me during this weird pandemic time, when my IRL social life seems to be limited to maybe meeting one person once a month.
Brush pens and posca on coloured A4.
I have no mouth and I must scream! ink, watercolour, gouache and gold leaf on paper, 75x50cm, 2020, POA. Another artwork created in lockdown. A reflection of and introspection into thoughts and feeling of living during a pandemic.
Meet Dr. Lorna Breen. She was in the trenches of the front line inside the New York hot zone during the first wave of the pandemic. She saw the massive influx of patients she knew she could not save (29,000 deaths reported in April, 2020). She contracted the virus and after recuperating, went straight back to work. A week and a half later, the hospital sent her home. Her family intervened to bring her back home to Charlottesville, Virginia. During her visit with her family, she seemed “detached.” She passed away April 26, 2020 at the UVA University Hospital in Charlottesville from self-inflicted wounds.
"She tried to do her job, and it killed her… Make sure she’s praised as a hero. Because she was, she’s a casualty just as much as anyone else who has died."
—Dr. Philip C. Breen, Father
"There is," said the marzipan pig, "such sweetness in me!"
"The Marzipan Pig" by Russell Hoban is one of my favorite books. During the pandemic, @pgoedi from @communitybookstore read it and I drew it. Found it again and wanted to share it.
This makes me want to draw live again. It is such a nerve racking thing and so fun!
Workers in grocery stores take every precaution to keep themselves and others safe from the coronavirus pandemic. Art presented in pastel drawing. Special thanks to: https://www.revounts.com.au/woolworths-promo-code
2021, pandemic is still upon us. My memory is fuzzy but it’s wreaching the one year mark when I had to tell a patient for the first time in my career that they were COVID positive. It was also the first documented COVID diagnosis in our clinic system.
Did your cat do this during the pandemic? I have read the stories online! It's a T.P. massacre here for sure! R.I.P. T.P.! Check out the rest of my Inktober posts on IG: @dittofunkysketch123 :D And now I have some of these illustrations on teepublic! Search under 'sketchcadet'! :D
Situational awareness is important these days. Pre-pandemic, I sometimes take my doodles to coffee shops during my lunch breaks and relax for half an hour or so by mindlessly scribbling/shading with my Bic pen. People usually leave me alone but this drawing made me realise that not everyone wants to see a man drawing a naked man. A few people took exception to my subjects’ lack of clothing and made their displeasure known by telling me. Suffice to say, I try not to go into coffee shops anymore while working on subject matter that might offend anyone. Bic4 Ballpoint Pen on 9” x 12” Archival paper. Model: Malik_E
I genuinely can't believe it's already March (I also can't believe it'll be a year since the pandemic really started). Yesterday also marked one year since I started journaling, which isn't an actual major thing, but still. How quickly time flies and how big of a difference a year can make. "And when it rains, the rain falls down Washing out the cattle town But she's quite safe up far away in her eiderdown And she dreams of crystal streams Of days gone by when we would lean Laughing, fit to burst, on each other."
It’s been over 20 years since I was an artist and animator in the video game industry and did art on the computer. I’ve been re-learning digital art since I’ve been stuck in doors during this Covid pandemic, and this is a charcoal piece I just did in Procreate. If you haven’t already tried this mind blowing program, I highly recommend it!
(HB pencil on a 139mm x 87mm postcard) It's not surprising that the pandemic would inspire me to do a work such as this. How could it not? It shows both the growing need for social interaction people have in isolation, along with the need to protect themselves. These two things have come together in a piece depicting a strange group of gate-crashing party-goers.
