Acceleration is a defining characteristic of modernity, evidenced in rapidly changing economies, technologies, ethics and culture, collectively these phenomena create conditions that are both dynamic and dangerous. They can provide exhilarating experiences but they can also render us obsolete.
Covid 19 has super charged this reality and adaptability has now become an ever more vital asset to us all. Arguably Artists are more used to shifting economies than other professions as their self-employed status makes them rely on networks and alliances that are often short-lived, either blooming or dying back. My first reaction to the pandemic was to welcome the retreat from being an Artist and concentrate on my relationships and my home. With all my current projects suspended I took the opportunity to disengage from the studio and spend more time at home. I also hoped that a break from Art Practice would also allow me to zoom out from the work a day pressures of being an artist and ask myself about what kind of future life I wanted to live and what kind of art that I wanted to make. In time I hoped that I would return to the studio with a renewed sense of commitment to being an artist and perhaps a new direction of travel. As I now start to reengage with my practice I have decided to take more risks, evidence more process and allow materials more of a voice in my artwork.
The impact of the pandemic on the Art world is hard to gauge right now as the wider economy is just now attempting to reboot. The predictions are dire as events such as degree shows, festivals , art fairs, residencies and biennales that are such a key part of contemporary art today will either not go ahead or be significantly changed.
However with our aforementioned collective adaptabilty I believe that new dissemination methods will emerge out of this situation along with significant new art. I am not planning to directly address the pandemic in my work, but I do believe it will affect the tone of everything. Perhaps we should again consider the maxim of Patrick Geddes, “Think Global, Act Local”. It was relevant yesterday, it seems vital today.
