while the glow left us by Stan Barker

while the glow left us

Stan Barker

while the glow left us renders scenes from the emotional landscape of the last two years, a terrain marked by the pressures of lockdown. With the physical distance between ourselves and our loved ones amplifying the pressures of isolation, our connection to the natural world and each other strained by restrictions, and our faith in the stability and security of society deeply shaken; for many the trauma of lockdown remains a black hole in the landscape of the mind, into which two lost years have vanished, never to be seen again. Simulating cinematic depictions of the paranormal in the place of the familiar human form so as to disarm the more sinister cultural implication of spirits, I aim to transform them into sympathetic witnesses to a tumultuous yet hushed era in our recent history. Through them, we’re offered a glimpse of the world not yet distant in the rear-view mirror — one of lost futures, a stagnant present and the spectre of yesterday.

© Stan Barker 2022

© Stan Barker 2022

© Stan Barker 2022

© Stan Barker 2022

© Stan Barker 2022

The bird song replaced the chatter of the street, in the echo of our absence. Time had long since stopped for us, but not for them. The world kept turning while we were left behind. Today’s routine the same as yesterday, to the same three songs over and over. Spring came but the glow wasn’t its passenger; its bloom unseen by our eyes, its warmth forgotten after the long winter of closed doors, absent any of the dwindling glimmer of autumn. Maybe next year, like they said last year. ‘Back to normal’ despite normal being a relic. It hasn’t been so long since normal, but without the glow it felt like a lifetime. Without the glow, we almost forgot.

© Stan Barker 2022