SWEET TRAGEDY — A BOOK OF MAGAZINE

ART & WORDS BY TEXTILE PRINT DESIGNER MELODY HESARAKY

This series of illustrations are inspired by the current situation here in New York City, where I currently live and work. It is quiet out and it feels like the loud, vibrant, bustling city is now mired in slow motion. It’s like I’m watching a surreal movie.

Everything I have been reading lately starts with "Due to COVID-19.. IT IS CANCELED". Everything from my own art exhibitions to conferences I was supposed to attend, to events, concerts, talks, etc.; all have been canceled.

Right now is the time to be sensible and inspire each other. I feel like the world isn’t that big after all, and we are all witnessing how a virus can travel the world with a rapidity that we could have never imagined.

This situation can be a rare opportunity to connect to each other at a deeper level, and develop sympathy for others who have been in self-quarantine for all their lives. So for those who have never had security, I hope that this difficult situation can bring us closer together and create a more united community around the world. Perhaps it’s time to share with each other the ways we cope, reflect and move forward. I am creating on a daily basis and these recent illustrations are portraying how it feels to be self isolated these days.

Similar to my other illustrations, music was one of the leading forces while creating them. This time in a room on my headphones! I wished to produce a pure and transcendental art form and not just use a familiar image! I use music as an analogy or metaphor in my designs and artistic expression. By listening to music and emulating it in my work, I have discovered unconventional techniques in my pattern designs and art-making approach.

Like music, my work was created from the depth of my inner self and the purest way to express this is letting the rhythm leads what I draw.These fashion illustrations are visually communicating the magic of music. You can perhaps dream without words and fly through time and space without moving by looking at them.