The Creation of Mixed -Technique Printmaking: Capturing Feelings during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This research aimed to 1) examine the social impacts of the 
COVID-19 pandemic and 2) create mixed-technique printmaking artworks that express the emotional distress caused by the COVID-19 crisis through mixed-technique prints, lithographs, material-based prints, woodcut prints, stencil prints, and paper prints. The study employed a qualitative creative research approach. Primary data were gathered from documents, investigations of printmaking artists’ practices, and field observations. The data collection process involved drawing, photographic documentation, reviewing artworks prior to the research process, technical experimentation, and producing preliminary sketches for the development of mixed techniques. The data were assessed by visual arts experts using evaluation tools focusing on content, technique, and aesthetic quality.
The results indicated that 1) the COVID-19 outbreak significantly 
affected life, society, the economy, and education both globally and in Thailand. These social impacts served as a source of inspiration for creating visual artworks that document important societal events, reflect personal emotional states, and convey emotional distress. 2) Three mixed-technique printmaking artworks were produced: “Prayer to the City,” which expresses the desire for the crisis to pass and the seeking of spiritual refuge during isolation; “The Rhythm of Life and Faith,” which reflects calming the mind through nature and spiritual practice; and “The Rhythm of the City and Life,” which depicts the sense of discomfort experienced while living in high-rise buildings, along with the congestion of residential environments during a time when constant vigilance against COVID-19 infection was required.