Astian Rey

Throughout the course of the pandemic, I have encountered many, both negative and positive aspects. First of all, I was lucky that I had unhindered access to my workshop and could continue to pursue art. Since my activity is related to the creation of sculptures, I periodically need different materials, such as metal, concrete and various tools that I may need urgently at any time. In this regard, I ran into a problem. Most of the specialized stores stopped working, or they only worked on Internet orders. This caused a lot of inconvenience, since, for example, buying paints, varnishes, etc. is not possible without examining samples in the store. Therefore, as soon as stores opened for a short time, I bought in advance.

At the same time, these circumstances prompted me to seek and master new materials and techniques to create my works. Thus, I began to use wood in my art, which expanded my possibilities. It is also worth mentioning the transition of exhibitions from physical galleries to online spaces. It also has its pros and cons.

One of the advantages is the opportunity to participate in many international exhibitions, where the transportation of bulky works would be very expensive. The downside in my case is the difficult presentation of my sculptures in online galleries. First of all, due to the fact that my works are voluminous, and online exhibitions usually show two-dimensional photographs of my works. Unfortunately, these technical nuances do not always make it possible to convey the full impression of the sculptures to the viewer.

Also, shortly before the start of the pandemic, my work was selected for participation in physical exhibitions in several countries. I managed to send my works even before the quarantine began, but after the end of the exhibitions, the return of my works to Ukraine became a real problem. For several months curators from Romania could not transport my works across the border to Ukraine, and I was already sure that I would never see my works again. With great difficulty and with the help of representatives of the embassy, the paintings returned to me. The same applies to sending works to collectors abroad in case of purchase.

Summing up, I can say that these circumstances have forced all of us to change our way of life and re-learn to do those things that were previously easily achievable. Good or bad, I do not presume to judge. After all, if we cannot influence global circumstances, then we can either resist the inevitable, or learn to live in a new way.