ALONE, TOGETHER
This essay was written for the online exhibition Alone, Together, curated by Erin Mathews at Gippsland Art Gallery.
“I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo.
"So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
For many of us, we will think about the before and after of coronavirus. Before, when we could hug our friends, go out for brunch, or travel around the world. And the after, isolation, restrictions and concerns.
Over the course of the last few months, museums and galleries around the world have been working to understand and respond to this crisis. Their responses have ranged from galleries across America sending each other virtual bouquets; museums collecting artifacts like facemasks, poems or videos; or utilising hashtags which encourage people to recreate famous artworks using only the objects from their own homes.
During this time of crisis, many of us are turning to a wide variety of creative outlets – music, art, performance, photography, writing, films. Whether we are creating or consuming culture, the arts are vital during this time of uncertainty. We can use art as a space through which to process the difficult and challenging emotions that arise as a result of our isolation. In contrast, we can also use art to focus on the positive elements around us. Concurrently, many forms of creativity can help to reduce anxiety and stress and help us to relax.
Now that our world is slowly starting to reopen, it is important to be able to reflect on our experiences and to find comfort in what is familiar and that which we can share with others. This is where art can step in and help us understand and describe what we are feeling. Art can bring comfort; it can remind us of memories and experiences beyond our homes.
This special online-only exhibition brings together a selection of portraits from both the Gippsland Art Gallery and the National Gallery of Victoria. The works chosen represent a selection of activities that you might be undertaking during your isolation. From these twenty-four artworks we can see a selection of figures creating their own artworks, men and women bathing, children with toys and books, musicians contemplating their instruments, people spending time with pets, depictions of taking (socially distant) walks and an overwhelming selection of people staring pensively into the distance.
These images provide us with a snapshot into people performing the very same tasks that we have found ourselves repeating over the previous many weeks. They act as a reminder that we have been down this road before, and that we will make it through.
Thank you to the National Gallery of Victoria for loaning the images selected for this exhibition. For more information about the National Gallery of Victoria, please visit their website: https://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/