Ignorance Was Bliss:
Watercolors from a time before Covid

Deborah Addison Coburn

Wednesday April 28, 2021 through Saturday May 22, 2021

After my previous show of figurative drawings with a political theme, I had decided to allow myself the freedom to just experiment for a while, incorporating watercolors with some of my doodle images. It was all very playful and light-hearted. Then Covid-19 hit, and I was no longer in a very playful mood. I put these pictures away, asking myself, "What was I thinking; playing around while disaster was looming?"

A year later, with vaccinations giving a new sense of optimism, I see these pictures with new eyes. Are they as light-hearted as I thought? Why do so many of these images look microbial? Do some of these pictures feel a little scary or foreboding, or is it just me?