Mike Lopez
PPE-001, 2020
Digital Archival Print
24 1/4 x 20 1/4"
PPE. Personal – one’s self. Protective – to safeguard against danger. Equipment – items to defend. In a few short months, the world has begun to shape in terms of...
PPE. Personal – one’s self. Protective – to safeguard against danger. Equipment – items to defend. In a few short months, the world has begun to shape in terms of BC and AD, Before COVID and the yet to come After the Disaster. People fell into a space of in between -- something akin to a chrysalis. Inside their walls and in their minds, there is despair, fear, longing, and anxiety. As an artist, I feel it’s important to be open to the world. It has become increasingly clear during this period of isolation, to not only protect my physical self, but the inner intangible world where my creativity comes alive and breathes. A protection that allows for growth and connection. Within this series, the person alongside me serves to explore intimacy and how in that relationship I emerged from the chrysalis and began my journey towards AD 1. Will our relationships alter with new foreign objects mediating touch and kinship? Is real vulnerability possible After the Disaster?