SLEEP 12:12

January winter.

The past couple of nights seemed to blend in together when I began
working on SLEEP.

January was usually a cold dark month, and while this is nothing new, in a city still under lock down it felt worse.

For those abroad or in the US, Canada was late in getting the vaccine, so cities were forced to extend their restrictions longer. My city of Toronto ended up shutting down near the end of December.

I wasn’t sleeping very much, and restless for weeks.

Casually, I would notice my clock and see 12 :12 on it before going to bed.
It was something subtle that repeated for a few nights.

I continued to work on various small sketches but I wasn’t feeling much of a connection to what I was doing.

Some people are content with painting still life subjects or landscapes, I’m not one of those. My art supplies were also getting low and I couldn’t buy any more because of store closures.

The only thing that I felt interested in were shapes and form.
At the time I didn’t think very much of what I was producing.
There was a strong desire to get some practice in.

Many sketches were crumpled and thrown out before I settled in on a subject, SLEEP. There was an interest in doing a night scene since the lack of light seemed to dominate my existence. Creativity is a personal thing.

I had started painting as a need to explore ideas. But these were one of those moments where I was having my doubts. This path is not always smooth, as it can be difficult, strange, or erratic. I continued to move forward with it in spite of my reservations.

As I look back on this painting many months later,
I see, that the restlessness I was feeling was my creative intuition protecting my mind. The new lock down was having a detrimental impact on living.

It can be hard to see this when you’re in the middle of it. This inspired me to create a new series of paintings,which I’ve named SLEEPY WORLDS.

Toronto lock down restrictions were finally lifted on June 14, 2021.
The city has begun its reopening plan, and final vaccination shots are now underway.

Victor Ramirez

Under lockdown and SELF ANALYSIS

It has been a year since the Pandemic first arrived in 2020.
Most people were urged to stay in their homes, social distance from each other, wash their hands and wear a mask when you go outside.
We are all too familiar with this now, the new “reality”, and I am no different.

The painting Self Analysis developed quite mildly during this period.
I was finishing up some other projects previously when the Virus broke out.
The plans I had made previously began to change.
What was originally seen as a form of the Flu, began to take a sinister turn.
As like many, I was forced to work from home, and restrict my interaction with others. It was quite an adjustment.

The restriction of freedom in the name of public health was one I accepted.
But, one could not really be prepared for the length of time that this would occur.
The normal things I liked doing, eating out, shopping, and visiting friends and family were all taken away. The only communication I had of the outside world was through social media and television.
I was left only with my home and creativity.

The routine of being under lockdown was making me feel lethargic. Ironically, that is when it hit me, that the couch had become an island, and it was time to escape. The idea of fear and mental health started to resonate.

The fear was all around, from walking with my mask on and passing by people in the street, through to conversations I’ve had with others. Covid-19 had cast it’s shadow on world and each of us were dealing with it in our own way.

There was also the fear of expressing any opinions about it. The media had inundated everyone with information. The wearing of masks had become a political issue. What had become a health crisis has divided people. The mask for some had become a symbol of the oppression of freedom, and censorship. To others, it was been a lifeline of health, safety and survival. New Vaccines have come out to combat the virus.
The distribution to the public is still a contentious issue.

Here we still are in 2021, a moment in time uncertain when or if this will ever end.

Victor Ramirez

THE ART OF VICTOR RAMIREZ© All written articles and visual images are the copyright and creation of Victor H. Ramirez-vichramirez2015, and not affiliated with rhometechdesign.com