Images Taken During Quarantine

The Creation of Corona

A pandemic makes it difficult to work as a person who photographs people. But in fairness to the raging viral storm, it doesn’t just kill people. An existential crisis nudges us to ask what gives our work meaning. As a former devout Sunni Muslim, current atheist, and person who once wrote a Detroit Free Press op-ed that argued the overwhelming evidence showed Michael Brown’s shooting was justified, I find meaning in questioning assumptions.

The COVID-19 scourge has revealed a number of questionable assumptions. Social media prayers and unflagging church attendance show many people think shelter can be found in an intercessory god. I think this assumption should be challenged (especially since taking this assumption seriously can make people die). So, unable to photograph other people, I create an assumption-challenging still-life.

“The Creation of Corona” is inspired by Michelangelo’s “The Creation of Adam.” According to Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Adam is the first human God creates. In those faith traditions, God is further portrayed as all-powerful and the creator of all things. This raises a challenging question: if God is the creator of all things, isn’t God also the creator of the virus that has killed countless mothers, father, sisters, brothers, sons, and daughters? If God created the virus, why would anyone expect God to save humanity from the virus He created?

In Michelangelo’s painting, Adam and God’s hands are parallel. To suggest subjugation, I placed the human hand lower. The fingers are cast downward suggesting fealty. Desperation. God’s finger is pointed issuing his mercilessly murderous creation.

I believe death is final. I believe the universe doesn’t care if we live or die. As such, I believe we each have a responsibility to take care of each other. I believe it is important to infuse these beliefs into the work I create. I believe doing so is what makes my work distinct from another person with a camera and a few lights.

Finally, I believe humanity will survive this scourge. I believe we will be saved by scientists, nurses, doctors, and an informed citizenry that follows the shelter-in-place orders from the WHO and CDC.

The salvation we seek is in our own hands. Godspeed.

[A bit of behind-the-scenes on the why and how of the photo: The model of the coronavirus was 3D-printed by a Facebook friend. I painted it blood red. It was suspended from fishing line. The hand of God is my hand. So is the hand of humanity. The two images were composited together in post. There was one light from above and a silver reflector below to cast light onto the hands, virus, and sky blue background position about six inches behind the subjects. I chose sky blue because it helps draw attention to the red virus. The bottom edges of the images are darkened. The top is bright. This suggests something powerful above yet still unseen.]