Fear and hope in Covid times
FEAR & HOPE was an unplanned piece, at least in its details and the emotive developments around it. I had been dissatisfied with “Yikes” in the Adventures with Acrylics series. However, knowing its potential, especially with more sophisticated treatment, I decided to repaint it as a much larger piece on canvas. When it was completed I felt both pleased and horrified.
Fear & hope * Click to read
Terror’s in the air * Can’t see it * Yikes! * Don’t want to
Waves of fear * Bewilder * Invade * Engulf * Entrap
Still there are shelters * Caverns of warmth * Graced souls in others
Moving * Transporting * Lifting
And bitsy treasures * Clear to searching, hopeful minds
The songbird * The fish * The growling beast
Fruit of nature * Roots of times to come
The flourishes beneath * And bounties * Of human deeds
It contained elements of the contradictory emotions I had felt throughout the pandemic. There was great fear; there were, at the same time, feelings of being challenged, of being able to achieve things despite the negativity that surrounded us. Of hope.
At that time in July 2021, the worst of the pandemic had been over for many of us. We were already vaccinated twice. But the Delta variant which devastated India was still the prevalent strain. It was still causing havoc in various countries notably the US which, despite its wealth of experience and resources, could not get a handle on the disease.
With this piece, however, I felt I was going down the slippery slope towards negativity again. I did not want to go there, let alone dwell there. I quickly wrote a few verses and extracted the parts that they accompanied — fear, hope, and all. After that I decided to rethink the direction of my art.
