Teen Quaranzine Project
Summer 2020
Teen experiences through the COVID-19 pandemic.
6/8/20 Sydney Mansavage Socially Distant, We Stand Together
“I wanted to represent the importance of social distancing during this time in a way that
empowers
people to continue to do so. While it can be hard, I wanted to show that social distancing together is important if we want to eventually return to
normal.�
Describe what social distancing means to you through painting or poetry.
Two
Quarantine Everyday that passes, When I must stay alone, Feels like a century, Each minute an hour. The city is silent, No cars on the road, People in their homes, Waiting, waiting, waiting. Out on a run, Almost no one around I can hear my breath, The silent steps I take. Six feet apart, But the neighbors still play, Running around, They don’t care anyway. Shops are closed, Buildings shut down, Everything online, No one is downtown. At night, The whole city is dark, But I peek out my window, At the sleeping town, Stuck in quarantine.
6/15/20 Alice Mayer Quarantine
“I wrote this poem during spring break in order to try to capture my feelings about what was going on during quarantine.”
Write a poem expressing what the “new normal” means to you.
7/7/20 Habiba Moawad Untitled
Four
7/30/20 Chloe Chui An Aisle at the Grocery Store
“An Aisle at the Grocery Store” is an attempt to capture the feelings of walking alone through a grocery store at the beginning of the pandemic, when staples like bread and soap were almost depleted. To me, it always felt both eerie and lonely, strolling through an empty aisle, but I imagine everyone held out hope for the future and a return to
normalcy after the virus had gone.”
7/11/20 Sydney Mansavage Just Because You Can, Doesn’t Mean You Should
“In many areas, the public is opening up. With different restrictions, of course, for being socially distant and with masks. However, new cases and
deaths from COVID-19 are still rising in the U.S. I think that the phrase "just because you can,
doesn't mean you should" describes the situation accurately.”
7/23/20 Krishna Kukadia Untitled
Six
Create a drawing that expresses how you were affected this year.
6/2/20 Sydney Mansavage The Things That Concern Us
“One thing that I think everyone will remember about this pandemic, is that toilet paper became hard to find. Out of everything going on during a worldwide pandemic, we seemed to be mostly concerned about toilet paper supply. This became an
Internet joke and something that I think people will continue to think of in relation to COVID-19. People will look at this toilet paper being sold at $10 a roll and connect it to the coronavirus pandemic almost instantly.”
6/23/20 Ana Isabel Kurek Untitled
“During this time of the pandemic I’ve been inspired to doodle at Xchocol’Art where I also volunteer.”
Eight
7/26/20 Briana Chen Late Night Skribblio
“I’ve been lucky enough to be able to keep in contact with my friends the past few months, and on Friday nights, we normally play a few games of Skribblio and catch up with each other. Talking and laughing with them has given me a lot of joy during this time, and I’m grateful.”
7/27/20 Habiba Moawad Untitled
“This is a portrait of someone I love or miss right now. It is a digital drawing of my cousin who I was supposed to see when we were supposed to go to Egypt this summer but obviously couldn’t because of COVID. I actually gave this to her as a gift on her birthday and she was very happy to see it.”
6/9/20 Akshita Bingi Untitled
Ten
6/16/20 Michelle Kim Abstract Global Unity Poster
Global Unity
“Promoting global unity through graphics.�
Design a poster encouraging global unity.
6/14/20 Michelle Kim Nature
“Coping with nature at Eagle Creek Park in the afternoon.”
Take a photograph of how nature helped you cope during the city’s stay-at-home order.
6/22/20 Nandini Mathavan Untitled
Twelve
Create artwork of a daily ritual that helps you stay motivated or brings you joy.
7/28/20 Angela Chen Hold On
“Quarantine gave me too much time to ponder myself and my friendships. Initial struggles, however, gave way to new values and I found peace with online connections. This collage represents my tangle with time and love when I couldn’t meet those who mean the world to me.”
6/23/20 Josie Kreitenstein Self-Portrait with COVID-19
“Self-Portrait With COVID-19 is a parody of the painting
Self-Portrait with the Spanish Flu by Edvard Munch. My painting is meant to draw a comparison to the past, and in turn, inspire some sense of hope in the viewer.�
7/31/20 Ridhima Tomar Untitled
Fourteen
COVID-19 snatched numerous Activities and opportunities Away from me. Luckily, It wasn’t the great love of my life: Dance. Bharatnatyam. As I walk onto the platform, The rich fulfilling sounds of my salangai Are a brood of ducklings treading after Every step I take, Continuing after their mother. The heavy weight of my plait dominates Over each patch of my elaborate costume, A convoluted maze of satin and silk My tamil jewelry, A scrapbook contained with a world of symbols And my light fair face, Concealed by a blanket composed of different maps of makeup. Suddenly, as I whirl my delicate state of my body around All that I can sense are the bright shimmering lights Showcasing themselves on my rosy red lips Along with my multi layered white powdered face, like dawn approaching, with the sun rising to sprinkle light On the world. I drive myself to let go. Sharp sounds of carnatic music resonate through the Entirety of the ballroom, as my body formulates itself together And suddenly I thrust myself into movement.
Through various forms of rhythmic sequences, I twist my fingers and Distort my wrists to form katamuka. I stretch my legs, Expanding forward to gather myself In the formation of a devi. I raise my eyebrows Contracting my lips down to a heroic state, Conveying veeram. Pounding every square inch of my heel onto the ground, I dance.
6/5/20 Nandini Mathavan Action in the Midst of the Stage
Use poetry to describe something you have learned about yourself during quarantine.
Sixteen
7/27/20 Ali Marble Untitled
“During the COVID-19 pandemic this year, one thing that has helped me cope with everything is baking. While baking everything from macarons to french breads, I am able to take my mind off of everything going on in the world, including not being able to see friends and extended family because of it. For me, baking is my happy place, where nothing can get in my way.�
6/6/20 Nandini Mathavan What’s Getting Me through COVID-19
6/25/20 Mihir Sastry. Infinite Time
Eighteen
Draw a comic or cartoon that uses humor to help us heal.
7/10/20 Ava Liao A Dog’s Wish
“This comic was inspired by how I interpreted a dog’s thoughts through the pandemic. I also wanted to capture how a dog reacts to the things we do.”
7/17/20 Sam Vrtismarsh 2020, Amirite?
“Using my stick-figure art style, I attempted to encapsulate what the opening weeks of the pandemic felt like. I also tried to give the comic a humorous and hopeful feel.”
6/26/20 Pranesh Monda Social Distancing Together
“During this quarantine we may be social distanced, but we can still contact each other through technology and phone. Stay in touch!”
Twenty
Necessities of Life We make promises to ourselves that we can never keep. Not because of ignorance or self hatred-There are just some things that can't be controlled. We can’t control the course of a virus, The actions of others, Or our own need for a future. In summer, I can go swimming. In summer, I can meet my friends. In summer, things will be normal again. I wanted to sew a dress for myself, And wear it to a party In a backyard decorated with fairy lights. Summer twilight, time for the making of memories Dancing and kissing and dreaming, Now only one of those things can happen. Summer is drawing to a close. It passed by so quickly, alone as I was. Time became cheap. I made promises to myself I could not keep, And I will keep promising. Hoping will get me through this. It has to.
7/31/20 Anonymous Necessities of Life
7/27/20 Habiba Moawad Untitled
“I made a symbolic comic that represents when the whole world wears a face mask and when it doesn’t. The difference is big!”
Twenty-two
Teen Quaranzine Project COVID-19 is an illness caused by a virus that can spread from person to person. It affects people in different ways from mild symptoms to more severe illness. The first case of COVID-19 in the United States was reported on January 20, 2020. At the time of this writing, there are over 100,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state of Indiana and over 3,000 deaths. Until there is a safe and effective vaccine, it is likely the numbers will rise. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offer resources and tools for young adults to help them keep healthy throughout this pandemic. The library would like to thank the students who participated in the Teen Quaranzine Project. Listening to the voices of young adults helps people understand how teenagers see the world, especially through difficult times. The original, locally created art in this zine is a collection of humor, hope, love, uncertainty, and understanding. In that sense, it is a place for us all to reflect as we support each other moving forward.