Our fifty-sixth post of the series, Artists in the Time of Coronavirus includes Chau Nguyen, Juno Rosenhaus, Milicent Fambrough, William Hannum, and Clio Herbert! Thank you for sharing with us and the Philly art community!
Submissions are closed as of July 29, 2020 at 11:59 PM, and this is our final post (at least for now)… Thanks for following”Artists in the Time of Coronavirus.” We have a wonderful community and are so proud of being able to share everyone’s art.
Chau Nguyen
The last few months for me resulted in lots of life change, mood swings, not to mention a newfound concern for COVID’s impact on the arts in Philly and worldwide. I miss seeing my art network. I miss walking into an art gallery and being confronted with a thought-provoking piece that shifts the space around it. Hell, I even miss doing art fairs and pop-up events, where I might feel too introverted to initiate a conversation.
Some days I like to think this is a historic moment that I would remember for years to come. Other days, I think about my increased carbon footprint, altered diet, physical fatigue, and ambiguous prospects. Then I would paint landscapes. There is something absolutely reassuring about immersing myself in a single moment in time, remembering its simultaneous tranquility and intensity, and understanding how light guides my perception of colors. These landscapes keep me going. In this act of painting is a small declaration: I am still here, observing life through brushstrokes. I am not required to be strong and outspoken all the time; I just need to live.
I am a Vietnamese immigrant artist based in Philadelphia. My visual language draws from memory, cultural roots, and landscape elements to convey frictions at the intersection of cultural identity, domestic trauma, mental illnesses, and transnational belonging. My IG is @chauspace and my website is https://chauspace.com.
Juno Rosenhaus
I am a lesbian photographer in my late-50’s living in the Mantua neighborhood of West Philly.
“Waking Under Shelter” was my response to the early shelter-in-place time period. Every morning for two and a half months I took a selfie upon waking. This resulted in 73 separate images which I made into a montage of nine images every week or two, culminating in a ninth and final montage containing the eight prior montages and one new central image.
Making montages out of my daily selfies was a way to share a part of myself with friends during the pandemic and also share the images with the wider community on social media in support of my photography practice.
The second image, “Left Hand”, is one of the 73 images in black and white.
Based on responses from my “Waking Under Shelter” series I began a project focusing on lesbians during the pandemic titled “Visible Under Shelter: Lesbians During COVID”, a virtual exhibition of lesbian lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.
I receive selfie submissions from lesbians worldwide which I share on Instagram and Facebook. The in-progress series is on IG @visiblelesbians. Readers can help spread the word about the “Visible Under Shelter: Lesbians During COVID” project by sharing @visiblelesbians and/or Visible Under Shelter with their networks.
Website: https://www.junorosenhaus.com/
IG: @junorosenhaus + @visiblelesbians
Milicent Fambrough
Milicent Fambrough is a contemporary artist and writer from San Antonio Texas.
Currently her focus is on mail artwork, writing poetry for publication, and art exhibitions to showcase her work. Milicent has a unique style all her own. You can inquire about charity work, commission artwork, and request stickers/mail artwork too. DM welcome on Instagram @milicent210
I recently wrote a piece and contributed to this publication.
https://instagram.com/lowcalibermagazine?igshid=14g4gmspf3r7I have also contributed to this interesting project.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CD-7xjMoWge/?igshid=dkddbvatpjkcCurrently my digital artwork is being exhibited on the streets of Harlem NYC.
https://instagram.com/laventana533?igshid=1rsw16en4sxjzI have also contributed to another awesome publication.
https://www.instagram.com/femszine/
William Hannum
Hi, my name is William Hannum and I’m an artist working in Philadelphia. Last year I moved to the area to start working here, as it seemed like an affordable and rigorous environment for artists. So far I absolutely love it! My main focus is sculpture, and recently I have been working on projects involving 3D printing and fiberglass, which I use to create large honeycomb forms. To finance my work (and life) I started a business in Philly doing home repairs and improvements. With the onset of social distancing, that contractor work has completely dried up, but I’m hopeful I’ll be able to weather the financial situation with some of the government aid. Now I have lots of time to do my artwork, but it’s a tough time to be buying the necessary materials. Once everyone can safely gather again, I would love to put together a show with another Philadelphia artist or two!
If you would like to support me by buying a smaller work on paper, please reach out and I will send over some images!
Clio Herbert
My current body of work à deux focuses on the dichotomy between our need for connection and fear of vulnerability. The work reflects an understanding that we each have our own set of personal armour built up over time through our encounters with others, with the intention of keeping us safe. The pieces are activated when worn, their relationship to the wearer exposing this frictive dualism.
The two pieces shown were completed in February just before shelter in place was implemented and wearing a mask in public was mandated. The heightened necessity for human connection during shelter in place continues to further contextualize the importance of this work for me. I find myself continuously asking: How can we navigate these boundaries (both personal and social) to fulfill our inherently human need for connection?
It has been inspiring and comforting to read all the other posts from this project. A welcome reminder that we are not alone.artist website www.clioherbert.com
