Portraits of the Pandemic: Cheerful Instagram illustrations depict life under lockdown
CBC Ottawa reached out to local artists and photographers who are capturing this unusual time visually, for a series we're calling Portraits of the Pandemic.
Early last winter, Chelsea Nelson was a little more tuned in to the threat of COVID-19 than most in Ottawa. The 28-year-old had a month-long trip to Thailand planned for February and was tracking the virus before eventually pulling the plug and going into lockdown.
Working from home on a reduced schedule gave the graphic designer more time to pick up her iPad and capture the upheaval and its impact in images.
"If I was experiencing it, I wanted to try to create art that other people could relate to during these trying times," she explained.
Nelson has long shared her illustrations on her Instagram @heychelstudio.
But through the last several months the pandemic has been her major muse, inspiring drawings about frustrating Zoom calls, reheated coffee and people turning into couch potatoes, as well as pieces that get at the scarier emotions that come with being swept up in a worldwide lockdown.
Nelson uses bright colours and tries to inject some humour into each piece.
"I guess I have a tendency to try to find the silver linings in things, so some of my pieces are definitely a brighter take. They're based around my little observations of day-to-day life and how it's affected me," she said.
Nelson keeps track of her observations and ideas for future works in a notebook she carries around with her.
"Sometimes, just before falling asleep, I'll have visuals pop into my head and then I'll write those down so I don't forget. Or sometimes I just jump in and start working on it when it comes to mind if I happen to be by my iPad," she explained.
Nelson posts her work on Instagram because she finds it gratifying to get direct messages and comments from followers who say an illustration made them smile.
But she doesn't shy away from tackling some of the difficult feelings of this time, creating images like a person flattened by the weight of the Earth, representing her struggle to hold up under world events that can become overwhelming.
"I certainly had a few days where I was feeling pretty heavy myself, so it was a visualization of that. I hope people see it, and if they're feeling the same way they'd know that they're not alone."
