Our fifty-fifth post of the series, Artists in the Time of Coronavirus includes Ellen Benson, Jaymes Fedor, Evangeline Stott, Brandi Spering, and Ilana Napoli! Thank you for sharing with us and the Philly art community!
Submissions are closed as of July 29, 2020 at 11:59 PM, but we still have 1 post coming! Stay safe and stay positive, and come back in the days to come for one more “Artists in the Time of Coronavirus.” We have a wonderful community and are so proud of being able to share everyone’s art.
Ellen Benson
Hi! I am Ellen Benson, mixed media artist and long time member of the Philadelphia Dumpster divers, which makes me a DUMPSTER DIVA!!! i reuse everything—ads, cardboard packaging, envelopes, game pieces, buttons, bottle caps etc. I’ve made masks out of baseball gloves, shrines out of tin cans and at the beginning of the lockdown in March, i sewed my silver button collection and ethnic textiles onto a jeans jacket. But now it’s summer and because we are “oldies” we cancelled our annual trip to Cape May because crowds on the beach and going to restaurants might not be a good idea. So—i made 2 artworks (around 3 inches by 4 inches) as teeny little amulets to keep me company. I think the titles: THAT WAS THEN, and GET ME OUTTA HERE are self explanatory! Visit my site at www.inliquid.com
Jaymes Fedor
I had been waiting for the “right time” to pick up oil painting again when quarantine began. I had always struggled with the idea of any kind of fumes hanging out in my space with no ventilation besides an open window. This constricted my ability to paint, or at least I let it. When quarantine hit, it struck me that I needed to start painting again, right now! These oil paintings are the result. I resolved the fumes problem by doing the first layer or two with acrylic instead of thinned-down oil. It works! I’m painting. Of course, guilt appears next to this little renaissance of mine because while the world outside feels like it’s on fire, I’m safe here.
jaymesfedor.com | IG: @Tenderneath
Evangeline Stott
I am an artist whose work centers around the connective tissue between people. My recent work has sparked from a conversation I had with a collaborator about how the term “social distancing” is fairly inadequate. We’ve all had to physically distance, but in many ways we’ve found out how to more effectively and intentionally socialize. People are checking in on one another. Having tough conversations. Finding ways to be there for one another while fighting for their communities. Being clever and finding ways to play! It’s really inspiring. I started #projectpassthepeace at the start of quarantine, and this was a project where folx were asked to donate to the Artist Relief Tree (or a similar organization) to help artists facing unemployment. After they sent receipt of their donation, I hopped on a call with them and picked a conversation prompt to get them talking about their personal stories. While they shared pieces of themselves with me, I collaged. It was a way to bring people into my artist lounge and create something with them while we have the time and the space we don’t usually have to do so. To give them a (digital) tangible representation of the connection we shared for a brief moment. I wanted to soothe their soul a bit with the magic of collaborative art making, but it has literally kept my head above water through this whole thing. I am profoundly grateful for everyone who got involved. (Find me and my work at @evangelinestott)
Brandi Spering
Each day starts with a cat paw on the sole of my foot. Buddy climbs up my legs, scratching my inner thighs with the nails he won’t let me cut, before reaching the podium of my nape. He meows into my hair, knowing that there is no longer a need to jump in a hurry. He follows me to the toilet before leading me to his empty water mug on the windowsill.
During breakfast, Buddy sleeps on the ottoman as I lay my legs across a folding chair. He wakes around eleven to squeeze himself between my laptop and stomach. He rests his head on my wrist. I type slower. When he decides he has had enough, he retreats under the bed to nap until dinner time.
I lose track of the hours, forgetting that I need breaks because the cushions on my couch could have fooled me. I switch rooms only when my fiancé is teaching a music lesson, especially if it is a student who hasn’t practiced. I put pants on to go in my living room and comb through the paperwork I printed throughout the day. I sign, I seal, I deliver to the mailbox around five. I call my grandma. Remind her to wear her mask if she walks around her apartment building. I return to my laptop to write, or pull out my paints. I leave a mess for the morning.
Ilana Napoli
During quarantine, I’ve been approaching art as a meditative activity. I focus on the brush, the pen, or the marker – how it feels and sounds when it touches the page, how my hand feels holding it, and the feeling of mark-making. Sometimes I have a plan, sometimes I don’t. Eventually, my body starts moving subconsciously and I just draw what I feel. Hours later, I’m back to reality.
My art process gives me focus, purpose, contentment, and distraction during a difficult time. In that sense, art-making has been extremely important to me during the pandemic as a grounding exercise. Since losing my job at the beginning of lockdown, I’ve been using all this unexpected, unwanted time at home to build up my portfolio and scribble out my feelings.
[Ed. Note Ilana Napoli is an Artblog contributor. Check out their posts here!]
