Mask Mania

Narayanan Krishnaswamy

MANIA

Narayanan Krishnaswamy 2021

MANIA

Author has the full right on all the photographs, designs and artworks presented here. No part of this work covered herein may be reproduced, transmitted, stored or used in any form or by any means graphic, electronic or mechanical, including but not limited to photocopying, recording, scanning, digitizing, taping, Web distribution, information networks or information storage and retrieval systems with due permission, intimation, credits and acknowledgement of the publisher and author. These photographs are owned by the author and has right of claim over them with grateful thanks to the concerned individual subjects. This book uses Tw Cen MT Condensed. The book design is by the author. narayankrishnaswamy@gmail.com Narayanan Krishnaswamy

to Dr. Rajeswari H R Dr. Ravindra P V Dr. Triveni Dr. Akhila N. Akhilesh Reddy S. Prabhukumar M. P. Ravi

Preface This book of photographs is a real life visualisation of regular human beings with their ‘virus protection masks’. It is about the human beings whom I interacted day in day out for different life and work interactions. I am familiar with them, with their faces and some of their styles and mannerisms. When I saw these familiar faces, with their masks on it was intriguing, as was me to them! These photographs were taken during the first interaction with ‘that Wuhan Virus’ during the aftermath of the ‘First Wave’. The interregnum from 2019 to 2021 saw people wearing or not wearing protection masks. End of 2020 people displayed brevity and were courageous enough to discard masks. They started coming out and started going on tours and visiting crowded places.

Aftermath was the starting of vaccination and a much serious ‘Second Wave’ claiming innumerable lives.

A face can tell a million stories. It is the face, which displays emotions. It is the lips and mouth, which speak, display and communicate. Closing the most dynamic parts of the face is like taking out almost all of the human verbal and non-verbal communications. Even visors are being used, covering eyes too (in a transparent manner) in addition to nose and mouth. All the subjects of the photographs in this book wear masks and no visors or shields to cover their faces. This left their eyes to ‘talk’. I believe each pair of eyes in each photograph in this book, not only speak but talk and communicate. They display enormous grit and vision. In fact, they identify the person within the mask.

It is another matter, the mask; each of the subject wears is unique and tells about the person and his choices. The nature of mask and its selector and wearer tells about its requirements and functionality. It carries unique aesthetics to itself and gives a persona to the wearer.

The persons photographed represent a wide range of professions and jobs and their practical and down to earth ingenious solution to this ‘Wuhan Virus’ tell about their resolve to fight the pandemic out, while carrying on with their ‘normal’ life routines. It is this indomitable collective human spirit and resolve to perpetuate humanity is the starting point for the author and I proudly present this small collection of survival efforts of humanity, among a nondescript small community, from a remote part of the world.

These fifty-three photographs presented here were taken between July 3 to 15, 2020 by the author using his OnePlus 6T (Model ONEPLUS A6010) mobile phone camera. The photograph of the author is by Sujith. S.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

46

47

48

49

50

51

52

53

Dr. N. Krishnaswamy is a design thinker, economist and designer. He has been in the printing and graphic arts and design industry for about four decades. He has published papers on economics, design identity and design management. He is a designer, painter, teacher, sculptor, photographer, landscapist and writer. He is passionate about colour, shape and walking.

MANIA