Abegael Uffelman, American, b. 1997
Today, Tomorrow, 2019—2020
Newspaper from 2020, glass, gaffer tape

After decades of fighting for racial equality, Americans are not equal, particularly Black Americans. Due to police brutality, systemic racism, and millions of cries falling on deaf ears, the news of today focuses on a movement of change. The fortune teller is a childhood toy that uses arbitrary choices to tell one’s future. Today focuses on oppression being faced because of skin color. Lines like “They’re going to kill me,” words said by George Floyd just before he was killed, and “this time is different” read as the fortune teller unfolds. Tomorrow is clear, blank, and fragile—our future awaiting change.

Dara Ronli Alper, American, b. 1997
Faceless, 2020
Glass, television

Our present world is dependent upon the thoughts of the people in the past. Our thoughts inform our actions, and our actions, both conscious and unconscious, construct our reality and society. For many of us, multiple hours are spent each day consuming news and social media. These platforms often make sweeping generalizations of people, stripping away individuality and dehumanizing large portions of our society.

Faceless silhouettes are entangled in glass medical tubing, spilling from a television screen. The tubing is a metaphor for dissemination of information, questioning the wider implications of how this mass consumption shapes our thoughts.

Megan Lange, American, b. 1996
A Quarantine State of Minds, 2020
Charcoal, paper

How do you make a body of work with limited supplies while isolated in your apartment with no good views to remind you of the outside world? How do you create the only connection you have to other people through social media because the world is in the middle of a pandemic?

After getting back into drawing, I was getting tired of myself and my tight surroundings being the main form of inspiration. Mindless scrolling on social media was getting old. I was missing everyone terribly. My anxiety and depression were high, and I was at an all-time low. I went out into the world as few times as possible for fear of spreading or catching coronavirus. I spent most of my time in a basement apartment with two small windows that were constantly being taken over by the cats. How was everyone actually feeling during quarantine? Was everyone going as crazy as I was? How can I reconnect with people?

A Quarantine State of Minds is a body of work I created in response to these feelings and questions. I gave people a prompt: send me a selfie depicting how you are feeling during quarantine along with a statement or phrase. I interpreted these selfies with supplies found in my home: charcoal and an old sketch pad. It was really great to not only have a reason to create but a reason to talk to people who I would not typically converse with. Some conversations were as simple as “here you go” while others lead to reconnecting with old friends. Although I do not feel that electronic communication is ever going to be an acceptable replacement for in-person interaction, creating A Quarantine State of Minds gave me a community to once again interact with and find comfort in knowing others were also experiencing the array of emotions as I.

Michael Mills, American, b. 1952
Covid Disconnections, 2020
Found sea shells, felt

The marks on these shells were made by other mollusks seeking to bore into the shells and consume the creature inside. The shapes of the marks are the results of evasive actions of the potential prey and the currents in the seas. They are the marks of the eternal interaction of the hunter and the hunted. I have arrayed these marks to suggest words and concepts that we have used to react to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our public discourse and social implementation of these notions have carried no more meaning or agreement to us than they did to the creatures that created these “letters.”

Pat Langley, American
Thang #381, 2020
Glass, copper, patina, time

Like most things in the universe, art is meant to grow with time, both in manifestation and contemplation. Thang #381 was made by blowing glass into a hand-woven copper wire cage, which was then sealed in a container with a salt and vinegar solution for ninety-one days. As the patina grew across the copper, COVID-19 spread across the United States, leaving most people confined in their homes. Thang #381 is a statement of change over time and how environment effects that change.