STEPH LOPEZ ART

Wire and acrylic epoxy. 2020.

For the Brave New World online exhibit and book. Artists were asked to submit work a few months into the pandemic. From their Facebook page: “Brave New World” is an exhibition and book project that will present a collection of artworks inspired by the bravery of people continuing to persevere despite the effects of COVID-19 and its impact on the local and global scale

Artist’s Statement:

“Prior to this pandemic, I do not recall the term Essential Workers being used. Frontliners, yes, but not the former. On social media, a lot of memes have come out thanking and glorifying our essential workers (as we should), farmers and delivery riders among them. These are the people and sectors that are often overlooked and marginalized. Antoine de Saint Exupery wrote, “What is essential is invisible to the eye.” In this context, I would like to paraphrase: those who are essential are often invisible.

‘Essential, Invisible’ is a jeepney figure fashioned in wire. Upon closer inspection, one will see human stick figures making up the whole. I chose the jeepney because it is a national symbol, highly recognizable, and because the absence of public transportation was one of my biggest problems during the lockdown.

When this pandemic has passed, do we take to heart all those memes we’ve shared about our essential workers and finally recognize their needs, or do we go back to making them invisible?”

– Steph Lopez