Coronavirus and the Creative World
Abstract:
At present, Covid-19 has emerged as a challenge, which has shown the true standard of the human. In this period of globalization, it did not take long for a virus to escalate into a global crisis, which forced people to remain locked in their homes. Whether working in the technical field, working in the service sector or those engaged in creative works such as writers, poets and painters, all have found themselves affected by this environment of this global crisis. Creative works are influenced by society and the environment somewhere. People with literary works are referring to this crisis in their writings, while on the other hand, some artists and painters express their feelings and messages towards this global epidemic through public access art are appearing, like Public Art, Wall Painting and Graffiti. Often words fall short in expressing emotion because art or pictures give us a lot of messages without having to take the support of words.
Doctors, nurses, medical staff as well as all those other workers are also a warrior, who are working day and night to save the common people from this crisis. We can easily experience the tireless efforts and hard work of these people in these graffiti illustrations with very simple visual effects. Many graffiti artists from India as well as around the world are giving respect to these Corona warriors through arts in a truly admirable way.
Keywords- Art on Pandemic, Coronavirus painting, Coronavirus graffiti, Coronavirus wall painting, Coronavirus public art.
Introduction-
Today, the reality of modern humans has faced Coronavirus, which has emerged as a global challenge. No matter how much we have developed in the present, we have reached the space, but still, nature is paramount. New viruses and diseases constantly arise to disturb the living world. The outbreak of this virus is worldwide. Everyone is fighting it in their way. The economies of countries are shaken. Millions of people have lost their lives, crores of people have been infected with this virus. Still, this number has not stopped but is increasing rapidly. As if we had forgotten the meaning of words like ‘lockdown’ and ‘quarantine’, but the arrival of this virus has revealed the real meaning of these words to most of the person in this world.
Every country, state and every person in the world has been affected by this virus in one way or another. Countries' economies have collapsed. Common people's jobs have either gone, or they are in crisis. In a country like India, with the exodus of labourers and the collapse of the occupation, we got a real vision of our actual system, which gave us a sense of our limited capabilities and the real form of our development. No developed and developing country has remained untouched by this epidemic, nor has it been able to fight completely without mass loss. No country, state, group or individual is perfect and complete. Whether the virus is human-borne or nature-borne, it can remind a human being of its true status. The history of infectious diseases in human civilization also proves the same.
By the time this article is written, the medicines or vaccines that have been assured hundred per cent of cure have not been made, although the relief is that the global medical community and scientific researchers have together intensified their efforts to combat the virus at various levels, whose benefits and effects are now visible. Globally, many vaccines or drugs have crossed several levels of their trials to enter the next phase and are expected to find a cure for this viral disease in the coming time. No one has any idea of the future, but it is expected that some effective treatment can be possible with the mutual support of the international medical world.
It did not take long for a virus to become a global crisis in this period of globalization, which forced people to remain locked in their homes. Those working in the technical field, those in the service sector, or those engaged in creative works such as writers, poets and painters, all have found themselves affected by this environment of this global crisis. Such actions are influenced by society and the environment somewhere. People with literary works are mentioning this crisis in their articles, while on the other hand some artists and painters are expressing their feelings and messages towards this global epidemic through mediums like public art, wall-painting and graffiti. Often words fall short in expressing emotions, whereas art or pictures give us a lot of messages without resorting to words.
These paintings on the walls (graffiti) show images of people fighting for the epidemic and their expressions shook us deep inside. Doctors, nurses, medical personnel as well as all those other employees are a warrior who is away from their families and working hard day and night to save the common people from this crisis. We can easily experience the tireless efforts and hard work of these people in these graffiti illustrations with very simple visual effects. Many artists in India are presenting their creative response through public art and drawing on walls. Many graffiti artists from India as well as around the world are giving Corona warriors the kind of respect through these arts which is truly admirable.
The details of some of these discussed pictures are discussed further.
Image 1(Attribution: Instagram/FAKE)
A street artist named ‘Fake’ from Amsterdam (Netherlands) has depicted a nurse on the wall (Image-1), a frontline worker fighting Corona. The nurse has a superman's mask on her face, which symbolizes the hard work of these healthcare workers and their superhero work in the times of Corona crisis. This painting on the corner wall of a building is very beautifully made. The nurse is portrayed accurately. Painted with green gown, blue and red colour mask has an effective portrayal of a nurse. The nurse is depicted looking upwards, seemingly fighting in this war with full expectation, and she hopes that this world will soon be freed from this crisis.
Similar symbolic figures can be seen in graffiti art (Image -2) of Barcelona (Spain), in which a doctor and nurse are depicted as angels with masks and wings. The picture is made in a very simple way. The well-known colours of the medical world - blue, green and white have been used in this picture with priority. The picture depicts the doctor and nurse wearing a mask and as a messenger sent by God with wings, which is also true in a way because these people are treating sick and infected people at the forefront.
Image 2(Attribution: Getty Images)
Image 3(Attribution: Getty)
A stunning artwork (Image-3) is seen on a wall in Melbourne, Australia, which also depicts a health worker spreading wings, wearing a mask and lifting the earth safely in his hands. His hard work and dedication to saving the world inspire us. The artist has written on this picture - 'Frontline Warrior Hero'. A male nurse is depicted wonderfully, sitting on his knees with his open wings, and carefully lifting the earth with both his hands, directly demonstrating that this medical worker as messengers of God is working day and night in this dangerous time to protect people against infection. The painter wrote 'Frontline Hero' and described him as a real hero, which is true.
The depiction of a Sikh woman wearing a mask in Hong Kong city (Image -4) is also based on this epidemic. A pregnant woman is seen wearing a mask and walking right in front of this painting. Symbolically we feel that these health workers are engaged day and night in the protection of all humans and future generations. From small children to the young, from the elderly to even the new generations to come, this warrior is at the forefront, who deserves real respect.
Image 4 (Attribution: Getty)
Image 5 (Attribution: AAP/Getty)
A symbolic depiction of the COVID-19 virus on a wall in the city of Glasgow, UK (Image -5) is in the form of a heavy metal ball tied to a man's leg with a chain. Symbolically, the virus appears to be trying to stop human life. The virus, which prevents a person from moving forward, maybe tied to his feet and is trying to stop him, but the gesture and confidence of this young man clearly show that he is a person who is not afraid of it. Would rather fight it and move forward.
This image (Image -6) of Xi Jinping in Melbourne, Australia is also in discussion, in which he is wearing a Hazmat (PPE) suit. It is noteworthy that this suit is worn by health workers etc. to avoid external viruses and harmful substances. In the discussion of this virus spreading from the city of Wuhan, China, the name of China is often taken in priority.
Image 6 Attribution: Instagram/lushsux)
Image 7 (Attribution: Instagram/teacher1)
Prince Harry is depicted wearing a jacket (Image-7) on a box wall as street art in Los Angeles, which reads – “Keep calm and wash hands.” Painted in a box wall, in the downwards also depicts two dogs in blue and orange colour looking towards the front.
In another painting, the artist depicts a human kicking the symbol of the coronavirus at full speed (Image-8), which marks a human will power and motivation to fight any difficulty and challenge. In the history of natural and other outbreaks and epidemics, human beings have always conquered them by fighting many difficulties and losses.
Image 8
Image 9
This graffiti features a beautiful depiction (Image -9) of a woman wearing a mask. The mask of this girl is lighter turquoise coloured, the combination of black, red, blue and green colours in the background can be seen. The portrayal of this painting is interesting, which attracts the viewer.
Conclusion-
Artists from around the world are exhibiting their artefacts on the walls, inspired by the epidemic and the Corona warriors in defence of it, to honour them and to give the general public the message of survival from the disease. In India too, such mural depictions can be seen among the common people in the form of public art. People are inspired by seeing these types of artworks on the walls, on the streets and the walls of high buildings. People truly gets a message that we must make efforts ourselves to avoid this pandemic. The frontline workers as angels who are working hard day and night, away from their family, are the real heroes, we should honour them.
References:
- 9News. (2020, August 9). Coronavirus street art around the world. Breaking Australian and World News Headlines - 9News. https://www.9news.com.au/world/coronavirus-street-art-around-the-world/9c1d02a8-cb6f-4b50-921f-fefea235d71b
- Image-1 to 7 - 9News. (2020, August 9). Coronavirus street art around the world. Breaking Australian and World News Headlines - 9News. https://www.9news.com.au/world/coronavirus-street-art-around-the-world/9c1d02a8-cb6f-4b50-921f-fefea235d71b
- Image-8 (Attention Required! | Cloudflare. (n.d.-b). Pixabay.Com. Retrieved August 9, 2020, from https://pixabay.com/illustrations/graffiti-wall-urban-painting-paint-4930399/)
- Image-9 (Attention Required! | Cloudflare. (n.d.). Pixabay.Com. Retrieved August 9, 2020, from https://pixabay.com/photos/cough-coronavirus-graffiti-5052068/)