The Artists Giving Us Hope For The Future
For many of us, I think it’s fair to say we assumed we would wake up on 1st January 2021 and - like a carriage turned into a pumpkin at midnight - the world would be magically back to normal. If anything, things have been steadily declining as this year has started. And while it may seem hard to hold on to hope as we approach the year anniversary for this pandemic, we decided to shine a spotlight on the artists giving Polyester inspiration to keep going.
From photographers to 3D artists, from illustrators to activists, the following creatives have collaborated with us on producing imagery that represents their take on the new year. Shared below alongside paragraphs on what 2021 means for themselves and their practices, we’re proud to present Polyester’s picks for inspirational artists that give us hope for the future.
“I’m sure I’m not the only one left feeling withered by 2020 and tired of trying in just about every aspect of my life. However, I love any excuse to reflect and refuel. A meaningless change in the date is no exception! I LOVE A NEW YEAR. I’m grateful for this opportunity to get back on top of all the things I’ve let slide in 2020 (and my God! There are so many...) I want to spend more time actually making art that resonates with people and maybe even make Dog with Boots into a book! I’m so excited to take a step back and get back in touch with my inspirations and desires. Never underestimate the power of a handwritten Big Plan™ in a notebook. If only there were more New Years in a year...” Clarice Tudor (@claricetudor)
___STEADY_PAYWALL___
“We’ve seen them all before- the beautiful but often grotesque gelatines and aspics of the 60s and 70s, but this time Elrod is up to her kitschy antics and cooking them up in a bright new way. She back in her art studio and taking the classic recipes from our grandma’s cookbooks and making them into LAMPS. 2020 had proven itself to be the year of reinvention and re-writing of the rule books so Elrod has turned our favourite [and feared!] wobbly dishes and turning them into permanent light fixtures that can be admired for years to come. This collection of illuminated sculptures encompasses everything Elrod is obsessed with- food, kitsch, retro design/décor, and of course- SPARKLES [In case you didn’t know, it wouldn’t be an Elrod piece if it didn’t have glitter in it]. “Mexakitchen- Recipes for A Dazzling Dinner Party” is the name of her imaginary cookbook from which these recipes are being taken from.” Elrod (Mexakitsch)
“I feel like we are all in the same boat when it comes to 2021, all riding this undercurrent of anxiety.
But I think the problems that caused the chaos of 2020 were not new problems, and many people including myself had felt this sense of psychic doom the past couple years as if something big was about to happen. And for my tarot nerds out there; I think we experienced ‘The Devil’ in Donald Trump and 2020 was our ‘Tower’. I certainly hope 2021 we can pull a new card.
But as we have seen already; the calendar year is a construct and things don't reset once the clock strikes midnight on December 31st. But we can all focus on the things we can control. Those are the things that keep me hopeful; the things that come from people taking things into their own hands. We can't trust our government, so all we can do is focus on the things we can control and there is a lot of power in that.
2020 brought the rise of a greater understanding of the reality of white supremacy in the US, a rise in mutual aid and a rise of community service. All of this has made me very hopeful. There is a lot of work to do and the real test will be to see if we can keep it going without needing to be prompted by tragedy.
My advice to artists in 2021 is to be kind and gentle to yourself. Put the phone down, take a deep breath and just make something. You don't have to show it to anyone, it doesn't have to be ‘on brand’. It's also okay to not make anything! Only make art if it's serving you. We can always take breaks to just be alive, you need that lived experience to make art about.” Glamhag (@glamhag)
“New year! It feels like the year hasn’t ended yet, it feels like a continuation of 2020 to me. I was inspired by the word “Hope” because I feel that we can still change what’s going on in the world, there’s too many things that need to be done. Covid, politics and social movements are a big concern to me right now. I try to escape from reality for a few hours when I draw. I like creating colorful characters, sometimes write a message or thought. Something that concerns me. I only wish for a better year for everybody. I hope we can find some peace of mind soon.” Humberto Cruz (@iscreamcolour)
“I cling onto hope. Because despite the cluster fuck 2020 was .. at the end of this year I am the most comfortable in my own fucking skin I have ever been. In my existence, so far. And who knows how much GROWING, EXPANDING, VOLUMISING i’ve got left in me. How bloody exciting is that!!!” Radam Ridwan (@radamridwan)
“Choosing hope is to refuse being calcified in a carcass of disappointment. Being a carcass of disappointment only benefits the bits of the world that refuse to enable joy and justice, and I can’t let them win. I can’t enable the voice that says « your hope polls poorly with x demographic ». It’s not my job telling my hope how high to aim. So choosing hope sometimes is a feeling of spite: you can’t have this last bit of me. Hope was once a pure feeling of suspended disbelief. But now it must be protected by the clarity of anger.
In this sense, the fear of the future is often just hope in the claws of inexperience and disappointment, from which we must release it. The terrified quiet that lives in us is a noise that is finding the right shape. Sometimes that shape is anger, and the long-living quiet inside of you is a muffled self. So, stretching into your own capacity for hope sometimes is a feral process. Being feral is punk, so by this logic hope is punk. And we’re keeping punk alive this way bro (lmfao).” Sasha Staicu (@famousfemaleartist)
