I’ve been considering making my photos into a book. In light of the current unusual situation we’re in, I feel it would be interesting to create some kind of story through my work – a sort of documentation of our time in quarantine. I’ve been keeping a rough diary over the last two week, since the situation became more serious in the UK and things started to change at a suddenly very rapid pace.
I read this article: https://www.bjp-online.com/2020/03/public-source-coronavirus-covid-19-archive/ which shares documents of various experiences during this pandemic, from people all over the world. I found it interesting that they say:
“One of the main things we wanted to address is that there are so many small narratives”
I’d like to create a narrative through my own work as I feel there is a very interesting story to tell about this strange time in my life. What started as photos of my everyday space have become photos of the only space I am now able to spend time in. I think including diary entries next to each photo in my book might be an interesting way to show the day by day narrative I have experienced during quarantine.
Below are my brief diary entries from each day over the last two weeks. (I will continue to write short entries each day throughout this project and for the duration of the pandemic). Some of them include facts and figures that caught my attention or where announced on the news that day. Some are reports of what I’ve been doing. And some are more personal, a record of my feelings that day. I’ve been trying to take photos each day to express how I’m feeling. I would like each diary entry to fit alongside a photo that reflects the feelings or events of that day.
Monday 16th March: On January 30th, the World Health Organisation declared the Coronavirus outbreak a ‘public-health emergency of international concern’. Last Wednesday (11/03/20), they announced a global pandemic. China first alerted the WHO about the virus on the 31st December 2019 – my 23rd birthday & New Year’s Eve. It slightly unsettles me to think how blissfully unaware we all were on this celebratory day. Whilst the virus has been spreading rapidly across Europe and the rest of the world, it seems that the UK has been relatively relaxed about the situation – until the last week or so. We are now being told to ‘social distance’ – meaning we shouldn’t be within six feet of another person, unless we live with them. Today, uni announced that classrooms will be closing and face-to-face teaching will be stopped by the end of the week. This has really hit hard for us students. There is a considerable air of sadness amongst us all.
Tuesday 17th March: As the gravity of the situation intensifies throughout the world, uni announced today that face-to-face teaching will now cease immediately. One of my housemates went home today to be with her family. I feel very sad and now even more uncertain than ever about the future. This feels like the end of what was meant to be another incredible 5 months of uni life.
Wednesday 18th March: The government announced that all schools and colleges will be closed from Friday and all exams will be cancelled. Myself and my fellow uni students feel a little let down at the lack of support and guidance we have received from the government. So far, we are expected to carry on as normal, paying the same fees, with no classes or resources and little hope of a graduating in the Summer. I feel a mixture of disappointment, anger and uncertainty.
Thursday 19th March: Today, myself and my three remaining housemates went into uni to collect our things and use the library one last time. My dissertation is still due next week. I expected it to be a little stressful, but I hadn’t ever planned for a global pandemic.
Friday 20th March: Another one of my housemates went home today. A lot of my friends are starting to leave Plymouth too. The government has just announced that all pubs, clubs and restaurants must be shut down by midnight tonight. Every day, this all feels a little more real, yet a little more surreal at the same time. On a brighter note, China have now banned the consumption of wild animals – this makes me very, very happy.
Saturday 21st March: Starting to feel a bit more isolated now that everything is closing. Life is becoming less normal by the day. There’s speculation that we will soon be put on lockdown like some of the other 180 infected countries. I went to three different food shops today to find essentials – a lot of the shelves are bare from people panic buying. There are people wearing masks in the street and queues outside every pharmacy as people search for medication. Wuhan, in China (where the virus began), came out of quarantine today. They had been ordered to stay inside since January 23rd.
Sunday 22nd March: Most non-essential shops are closing now. The UK death toll has risen by 48 in the last 24 hours, reaching a total of 281 people. The BBC announced that the lack of travel and human activity means that pollution is down by 50% in some countries compared to last year. Perhaps, there will be silver linings and lessons to learn after all this is over.
Monday 23rd March (LOCKDOWN DAY): Today at 8:30pm the whole country stood still as Boris Johnson announced an official lockdown, until April 13th. The broadcast has been described as an event comparable to the announcement of the Second World War. All non-essential shops are now closed. We are only permitted to see the people we live with and must only go outside for exercise once a day or to buy food. This still doesn’t feel real.
Tuesday 24th March – LOCKDOWN DAY 2: The weather was incredible today, typically. I’m suddenly very thankful for our roof terrace. There are now three of us left in the house. We’re trying to make the best of it – today, we planned some fun things that we could do during lockdown. I had a long phone conversation with my mum this evening as I won’t be able to go home for Easter anymore. Feeling a lot of mixed emotions today.
Wednesday 25th March – LOCKDOWN DAY 3: The weather continues to be nice. Today, we had a barbecue and some drinks on the terrace to lift our spirits a little. Today was a good day in lockdown.
Thursday 26th March – LOCKDOWN DAY 4: Today was my official dissertation deadline. Before all this began, my housemates and I had planned a celebratory camping trip. The weather would have been perfect for it. But I spent the day doing work instead. Today was not a good day in lockdown. However, this evening the whole country came together to stand on our doorsteps and clap for the NHS workers for all the work they are doing through all of this. It was an incredible moment. Someone on our street even set off fireworks. I’ve never felt such community and such a sense of togetherness shared by so many people. Tonight was a real reminder that we are all in this together.
Friday 27th March – LOCKDOWN DAY 5: It has just been announced that Boris Johnson has tested positive for Coronavirus. Today, I felt a bit overwhelmed with everything.
Saturday 28th March – LOCKDOWN DAY 6: I’m starting to miss my family a lot and it’s unsettling not knowing when I will see them again. My grandparents have been in self-isolation for a number of weeks now and I think about them a lot. I have to keep reminding myself to just be grateful that we can all stay safe. My housemates and I are planning to have a party tonight to cheer ourselves up.
Sunday 29th March – LOCKDOWN DAY 7: Surprisingly, a week in quarantine has gone by pretty fast. But it’s looking like the lockdown will be considerably longer than originally thought.
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