Our thirty-fifth post of the series, Artists in the Time of Coronavirus includes Bridget Modema, Nazli Ates, Faith Mamaradlo, Callie Hirsch, Justin Tyner and Caito Stewart! Thank you for all who submitted! And if you want to participate, send your statement (250 words max) and 2 photos to support@theartblog.org. More details here. Stay safe and stay positive, and come back in the days to come for more “Artists in the Time of Coronavirus.” We have a wonderful community and are so proud of being able to share everyone’s art.
[Note: We have gotten almost 300 submissions, so if you haven’t seen yours yet, don’t worry- it is coming, and we can’t wait to post it!]
Bridget Modema
My name is Bridget Modema Mayhew, I am a multi-disciplinary sculptor, painter and curator from South Africa. I specialize in glass portraits and metal tuning forks as well as multi-media prints. Metals, such as steel and bronze react with vibrations when the surface is gently tapped on. To me, this is the perfect metaphor for how human beings interact with the environment around them. I see humans as beings of vibration that is in constant flux with frequencies emanating from thoughts, feelings, and higher dimensions. Our species has placed so much emphasis on the growth of technology and ignore our own awareness of self-evolution. I aim to bring awareness to the senses and promote self-evolution not away from technology but alongside it. As vast as this field of awareness can be, I wanted to start somewhere, and that is through art- small sculptures and prints. Please visit my website or online portfolio for more.
Woman around the world has positions in politics, science, economics, and socialism which were previously a taboo. Females have gained respect and achieved remarkable results from their actions. This artwork is my shrine to these women. I used an African-, Eastern-, Classical Renaissance, and Modern style to interpret the powerful messages woman brought to society. The great woman of Art who shaped freedom for all women by utilizing their skills and being brave in a patriarchal society. The Butterfly winged mask of Bwa people is used to communicate with the spirit world. Steel and glass are used to erect buildings and is a classical symbol for the Industrial era. As I gaze upon the sculpture I use this affirmation to evoke stillness and inner-strength:
“I am the conscious mind and I resonate to the universal frequency, fill my cup with the wisdom I desire”.
www.modema.org
https://www.artworkarchive.com/profile/modema
https://www.instagram.com/bridgetmodema_art/
Nazli Ates
I like the places where there are no boundaries. The boundary is to end that has no beginning. Thus, the incorporeal is above all those details we see. I place my own feelings, my mind, my conscious in the centre of my artworks. These sources turn into infinite inspiration. That is a one-way road that never ends. On that road, I come across my subconsciousness which is needed to be discovered and I imagine these encounters to be familiar to people who look at my artwork. The subconscious that cannot be restricted numbers, shapes, colours or forms allows me to work multidirectional. In my works, multidimensionality is not physical but reflections of perception. Through looking at my pieces, I want the viewer to discover his own conscious.
I establish an involute series of works linked with each other. My works are living and I consider them as the source of inspiration for future creation.
nazli
Faith Mamaradlo
To me, social distancing has now been redefined to social detoxing; who am I, considering I no longer face the burdens of social interactions and expectations? Isolation offers many opportunities for personal growth; these introspections are keeping me positive during this pandemic.
The first painting was created when I was in high school. As an Asian-American, I found Philadelphia’s Chinatown to be the epicenter of Asian culture, to which I frequently gravitated to. There is so much to experience in Asian culture and to hear about the xenophobia and racism occurring during this uncertain time has disappointed me. Asians and Asian-Americans are NOT the faces of this pandemic.
The latter painting is a work-in-progress self-portrait I recently created while in quarantine. I believe that self portraits are important benchmarks for artists; they allow for a deeper and intimate evaluation of self-image at that current point in time. My past self-portraits were completely different. I expect the same statement to be true for my future self-portraits.
I’m a student at the University of Pennsylvania and a lifelong Philadelphian.
Callie Hirsch
A visual artist’s diary created during the coronavirus 2020.
While residing in Brooklyn, processing the fear and isolation felt.
Sirens being a constant, donning masks to go outside,
even just into the hallway to get the mail, and considering all
outdoor clothes contaminated and needing to be washed upon
re-entry to the apartment. Missing friends and concerned about death
and hoping not to lose anyone I know.Callie Hirsch
CallieArt.com
Justin Tyner
I learned the ancient craft of stained glass out of art school and have been actively practicing it for twenty years. I am finding new ways to experiment with the medium by taking it out of context. Putting it up as street art and exhibiting my latest works in major galleries like the Philly Magic Gardens. My exhibition Light As Memory: Recollections Through Stained Glass, was up there last year from July through September. Simultaneously in September I was awarded an international artist in residence in France at the Chateau Orquveax. It was pure magic there. I was invited to speak at the Stained glass Association of America’s annual conference in June, until it was cancelled. Experimenting with the possibilities of stained glass is my priority. The Stained Glass Photography Project is my latest endeavor. Please contact me via, email jtandt@gmail or reach out on Instagram @jtandt
Caito Stewart
I make sculptures of everyday objects that have personal significance to me. Their creation allows me to process aspects of my personal history.
When I make something with clay, I can pour my care and attention into it, effectively honoring the memory it represents. However, when I cast something in plaster or resin, the process creates a distance between me and that object, establishing a boundary between myself and a more difficult aspect of my past.
Whatever the process, each object is rendered functionless. Destruction and decay are suspended indefinitely. Everything is organized, contained, and compartmentalized.
Of course, I know that hardship and change are unavoidable. The coronavirus is a prime example. I am in my last semester of the MFA program at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and my thesis show has been canceled indefinitely. I have been working towards this for two years, so it feels like a major loss. I also miss my classmates, professors, and my studio.
The first image is a finished work, “Hearth Failure” (2019), which was going to be featured in my thesis exhibition. The second image is a small section of work in progress. This piece was also meant for my thesis show, but its production was slowed by the shutdown of our studios. I have continued working on it while in isolation, casting resin outside in the front yard. Unfortunately, there is another piece still stuck in my studio, waiting to be finished. It has been difficult, but I will persevere!
Website: caitlin-caito-stewart.com
