Bidhata KC, Visual artist, (Nepal)
Painting
Size: 36 x 36 inch
Medium: mix medium
Year: 2020
With the rising COVID-19 crisis, I cut short my month-long art residency in Vienna and reluctantly returned to 21 days of voluntary self-imprisonment.
Fearful that I could be carrying the virus, I stayed in my room, staring at the outside world through the grille. The stigmatization of Nepali returnees and hate speech on Facebook made me feel like an outsider in my own home. Memories resurfaced of my teenage days in lockdown during the menstrual cycle; the cruel Chaupadi system is now illegal in Nepal but still practiced by many. D
uring this time of isolation, I was drawn ever closer to Klimt’s The Kiss. The essence of that painting, love, reminds me of the need for LOVE now more than ever. The resentment of reaching Austria yet not being able to see it with my own eyes also features in mine.
Ekkais Din represents my travel, self-isolation and emotional turmoil during those difficult days.