Out of the blue, big changes. Pandemic, fear and strict rules of the "new" temporary life. Everything not necessary for daily functioning is shut down, and people, deprived of outside entertainment and top-down forced by law, sit at home and try not to go crazy.
French painter Eugene Delacroix said: "If I had no paints, I would paint with mud," and these words have not been so appropriate for a long time. Museums and exhibitions don't work, there are no artistic events and cultural happenings, but modern artists are left with two strong weapons: The Internet and infinite creativity!
Art in quarantine has begun to take extremely interesting forms in the media, based mainly on the adaptation of historically created works to the prevailing harsh living conditions. Partly anonymous, partly official artwork conquers social networks, surprises with its ingenuity and effectively solidifies when boredom or resignation attacks you. How do artists in quarantine work? See for yourself!
Lady with an ermine also puts on a mask
We'll start with examples of works by well-known artists that have been "matched" to government findings and recommendations. Some approached the subject in a more humorous way, others with the style and nature of the replicas try to make people think. Although undeniably, each work is accompanied by a kind of humor - after all, who won't be amused by a historical figure in a contemporary mask?
Looma Agency and the #ArtOfQuarantine social campaign
Projects: Looma Agency
source: https://label-magazine.com/
The time to fight the coronavirus is first and foremost the need to make people aware of how to behave during the epidemic. That's why, at the behest of the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture and Public Information, the Looma Agency has created a network of posters that convey "quarantine" instructions to the public in an original way. Thus, Leonardo da Vinci's Lady, instead of a weasel, holds the macaroni and rice desired by all for home supplies, and is dutifully dressed in a hygiene mask. Jesus Christ, on the other hand, decides to eat the Last Supper alone to avoid unnecessary contact with the Apostles.
God also remembers the necessary disinfection of Adam's hands before breathing the spark of life into him with his divine finger:
design: Looma Agency
Source: https://label-magazine.com/
Ingenious, right? The posters evoke laughter, while reminding us to follow the rules of "coronation time", the observance of which can also be a real art. The Looma agency has risen to the challenge, and the Ukrainian government's initiative should inspire similar actions around the world.
Where have the famous figures gone?
Another interesting idea for using historical paintings is the "Hidden Spaces" project by Spanish artist José Manuel Ballester, who reduced well-known crowded works to the form of an empty landscape.
Photo by José Manuel Ballester
Source: http://www.josemanuelballester.com/
photo by José Manuel Ballester
source: http://www.josemanuelballester.com/
Where did the castaways from "Raft of the Medusa" go? Is Sander Botticelli's "Birth of Venus" possible without their main character?
José Manuel Ballester has created amorphous replicas of the most famous works of art, which allude to the emptiness that is now present in all meeting places. On the one hand, we recognize the transformed paintings, but the absence of the key elements that are the figures creates a peculiar impression of unease.
Photo by José Manuel Ballester
Source: http://www.josemanuelballester.com/
Although we have the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of individual famous works of art, there is no denying that the desolate canvases cause anxiety. Empty paintings are as unusual and apocalyptic as empty streets, but the author clearly subscribes to the #stayhome initiative: since the viewer sits in a home confinement, it is only fair that the characters also bury themselves in their corners. It's better for Venus to choose a more comfortable place than a shell to wait out her quarantine, while the insurgents in the painting "The Third of May 1808" Francisco Goya will happily escape punishment. Not for everyone the quarantine turns out to be the worst evil.
