The After the Plague Party looks back to past artwork to find a way forward after the COVID-19 pandemic. The first painting in the series was inspired by "The Marriage Feast at Cana" (1562–1563) by Paolo Veronese and other monumental artworks that were commissioned after memorable plagues.
The historic artworks commemorate the end of those plagues. Coming out of our recent pandemic, I wanted to create art that celebrates the end of our lockdowns. The paintings show celebrations and re-emergence from isolation into the hectic, crowded, and interactive world. I sketch from the historic paintings and then recreate them using my own drawings and characters from my home life. These characters include toys, dolls, and imaginary creatures.
To form a new composition, I loosely painted from both personal and historical sources. As I paint, I change the figures, add animals, my children’s toys, and imaginary creatures instead of Medieval or Renaissance-clad people. The black ink on paper the brush marks are fluid and gestural.