Melissa Doguim, Homage to COVID-19 Healthcare Workers (Detail), 2020, Acrylic on sculpting foam
Melissa Doguim
Artist Statement
I was struck dumb by the onslaught of the COVID-19 Coronavirus as were many. One of the first times I felt really unnerved was walking into a store to stock up on some “essential” items and found many shelves 90 % empty and 100 % disheveled. Toilet paper – gone. Really?
Then there was the fear of the virus and the fact that my higher-risk-group-husband is working as an essential worker every day going in and out of the city to the plant where he works. Over 42 cases have struck his work place and 2 of them have passed away as a result of COVID-19.
Isolation from friends, colleagues, and relatives for months.
Trying to help my 13 year old child cope with e-learning and set up our home as a make-shift office for myself and school setting for her.
Masks lying around now for each of us in every corner of the house. Is this real or am I dreaming?
Turning our laundry room just off the garage into a decontamination zone. Procedure when my husband returns home from work: strip down to his skivvies, drop contaminated clothing into a black plastic bag and close it to be washed later (in hot water). Then he must go directly upstairs to shower then spend dinner and the rest of the evening at home in pajamas. Not terrible to be clean and in comfy pj’s all evening I suppose, but so bizarre for us.
Listening to daily updates from government officials on how the virus is spreading and what heroes we have all around us trying to find a vaccine.
Our new normal.
I have been painting, drawing and sculpting for over 30 years and have taught art in public and private settings. I’ve had to teach remotely and then my students dropped off after losing interested in that format. So, in preparation for my next show, I started working with a new material – this 3-D painting “canvas” material that can be sculpted and painted, and this was the result. I finished this piece before George Floyd was murdered. More ideas for new art to explore now.
My Homage to the Healthcare workers. The light pours in from a nearby window, washing all the chaos with clarity and warmth – even love.