Isolation and the Artist

The model here is a service member of the National Guard and was going to be deployed to Kuwait a few weeks after this painting was made. Any whining I might do I try to think of her. I can’t imagine serving in the military under any circumstances.

The coronavirus has created an atmosphere of loneliness and isolation. Just what I’ve always said I wanted but never had enough of. Time alone. Leave me alone. I want to be alone, My mantra as a true introvert. But now, I have to confess. I need people and want to be with others. I never realised how important that is to me. Being alone too much is depressing and it’s hard to be disciplined when no one else is going to even know that you spent the whole day on YouTube or that you ate nothing but popcorn all day. I will be so glad when activities start back. But given the crisis at hand that is going to be months, not days. I have to adapt.

I am always two sided. On the one hand I need solitude to find myself and my work must ultimately be done alone. But too much solitude creates a depressed attitude and I find myself unable to work.