Katie Gresham (she)
Topography of Mothering During Pandemic, April 2020
ink on paper collaged onto canvas
16 inches x 20 inches
This piece is the largest in a series entitled "Marking Time" which was completed in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. This work "Topography of Mothering During Pandemic" reflects the inner landscape of early motherhood during this time of global crisis. Completed in stolen moments between caregiving, the work explores the emotional tumult of a specific experience--parenting two children under age three during stay at home orders. The marks were made with tiny remnants of energy over several weeks, then collaged together to map out the cycles of seemingly endless mundane moments, as well as, the overwhelming, claustrophobic uncertainty of this time. In its ups and downs, its endless loops, the topography shows where parenting exhaustion meets with relief from social obligations; where pandemic anxiety meets with childhood joy.