In the spring of 2021, a black night descended on India. A dreaded, unbridled beast unleashed its fury on an unsuspecting people. With unspeakable stealth, the beast gained ground, striking young and old alike. Its victims gasped for breath, thirsting for the very air that every living creature on this planet is entitled to breathe. Not a home, not a family remained untouched.
As an art student, we have an ability to absorb and manifest our environment through our work. These past two years, India has been living a dark night. This year, its victims gasp for breath. Many of us have lost our beloved ones and were unable to attend their last rites. This situation has ignited me the most. Yes, I have lost people I love and was unable to attend their last ceremony and get closure. I cried, I panicked, but was helpless and could do nothing. Through this work, I just want to show the agony we all have collectively undergone.
Madhavi Srivastava, ‘Me and My Surroundings’, linocut, 12” x 12″
Through my art work, I wanted to highlight an unpleasant situation in the country and in the whole world. Every moment people around us are being dragged away by the deadly disease, but we can’t do anything. Our health system is like a nightmare for us today, which is a shadow companion with whom we survive in this dark night at every moment.
Shuvra Biswas, ‘Scary Dreams’, woodcut, 12” x 12”
Here I want to show the moment after destruction. I am inspired by THE RUE TRANSNONAIN by Honore Daumier. I want to express the silence as well as the violence of the fight, the fight for survival and the fight with Covid . The human being is now in eternal sleep.
Nabamita Majumdar, ‘Violence’, linocut, 12” x 12”
Hopefully through this collaborative exhibition the artist entity will develop and light will be found in the dark life. I participated in this with this hope. I wanted to highlight the hopeful aspect of the current modern medical system through my art. The whole world is looking at medical science at the moment in the midst of this epidemic situation. I would like to say this at the end – everyone stay well, stay healthy.
Ananya Patra, ‘The Light of Hope’, woodcut, 12” x 12”
The work I produced here portrays the gruesomeness of the horribly repugnant circumstances in the present pandemic-ridden world. The living are threatened under the abhorrent gloom of devastation. We are vexed by an existential incertitude and ambiguity. The vivacity of our daily life is now obstructed by the panic of desolation and demise. This hectic aura that surrounds us highlights not only the instability in society, but also our lack of mental well being. The situation is compounded by fraud politics and mass media. Hence this portrayal of the human race striving to extricate itself from this hostile atmosphere becomes my sole objective.
Soham Chakraborty, ‘The Embrace’, woodcut, 12” x 12”
We continue living in the pandemic situation of ‘Covid-19’. This situationvcan be called as ‘living in a dark night ‘ as these days have been really dark. I lost my father on 7th July 2021 due to the same disease. The theme of my artwork is based on ‘Death’ after the shortage of oxygen level in the blood.
Purabi Jana, ‘Death’, woodcut, 12” x 12”
As the second wave of Covid was ripping through us, millions suffered and died due to the lack of oxygen cylinders. From the very beginning, it has been a total collapse, a governmental failure to provide us with essential services. Since then, we have been waiting for the sun to shine upon us once more, when this darkness of the bleakest night shall pass. But till then, we must endure; endure it together.
Sagnik Samanta, ‘The Endless Wait’, woodcut, 12” x 12”
All of a sudden Covid became co-passenger in our lives. We are still trying to figure out how to deal with it at the expense of a few lakh lives. It has forced us to lock ourselves in rooms where life comes to a standstill. We are trying to protect ourselves, especially our lungs with the help of masks, sanitizer, hand gloves and vaccines. Depending on these, we have somehow been able to bring our life back to its old rhythm.
Aruna Mondal, ‘Journey towards hope’, linocut, 15” x 12”
The name of the print is “Void”. Which means zero or empty. I think right now we are really living in a black night. Where all around is constantly empty and the relatives are becoming fewer. Around us we see the black market of oxygen, deaths due to lack of oxygen, the violence of mucormycosis due to medical negligence. We have a complicated life under the domination of Corona. Two mannequins have been used here for this purpose. They are victims of the situation and are a symbol of dumb people. They also have oxygen masks on their faces, and one of them cuts oxygen pipes, which indicates a situation where oxygen is needed but despite the need, unpredictable location of the pipes, use of unavailable sign in the oxygen cylinder, the presence of mucormycosis in the water bottle adjacent to the oxygen cylinder is noticeable. The Coronavirus’ tremendous effect on the plot requires a review of the virus’ sign in the background of this image. Due to the influence of social media, this news is so predominant in our homes today, so the symbols like social distance, quarantine are present in the social bar. This is a small attempt to break the image into a black and white division to make it look like a weird game.
Saibal Karmakar, ‘Void’, woodcut, 15” x 12”
The Covid-19 pandemic which is raging since the beginning of 2020 has really brought a drastic change in our lives and the way we look at things. Man was playing with nature and destroying the fragile balance. This was bound to happen. Nature claimed back its space. In early 2021, we witnessed a surge in the number of Covid-19 cases in India almost collapsing the medical infrastructure. Many patients were isolated in Covid wards and the only contact they had were the doctors and paramedical staff. The doctors played a crucial role in providing moral support to the patients and their families. We should not forget it in the years to come.
Hemavathy Guha, ‘Lest we forgot’, linocut, 15” x 12”
We are going through the current Covid-19 pandemic which is very painful to me. It has taken the lives of many people all over the world, not just those of my loved ones. It has made many lives miserable. We are all emotionally and financially devastated by being under house arrest for so long, as well as many Covid warriors – doctors and nurses who have risked their lives to save the lives of many people. These situations are very grievous for me, so I tried to express them through my art work.
Khokan Giri, ‘Pain of Heart’, woodcut, 12” x 15”
LIVING A DARK NIGHT 