Stationary

Stationary, created by Cole Hancock in May 2020, is a loosely-defined artist book, reminiscent of a dioramic sculpture contained within a folding box. Stationary, a state of being that describes remaining in place, holds a strong appeal in the face of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, which sent countries world-wide into lockdowns; it carries the sense of an oasis, despite its reference to the lockdowns. Within the box, five similar genderless figures are situated about the tiny space; no great amount of motion is displayed, and in fact each appears contentedly sedentary, as though endlessly waiting. The individuals (or perhaps the same character five times) each engage in a simple action, making no move to interact with each other. Of the characters, only one peers beyond the bars of their cage when the box is latched shut. Although the situation of these characters may first appear restrictive, pulling from the trope of the gilded cage, the characters do not seem unhappy with the circumstances. One lies back in silent repose, one lies face-down at rest, another sits reclined and the fourth gazes at their phone screen. In the center, the last figure is generating the most energy as they water the plants with a tiny smile. Though nothing overtly suggests it, the mood is calm, contemplative, and vaguely longing. The sense of waiting in the work has become a more central theme as the months have progressed, and the pandemic in America has grown inversely proportional to the population’s fear of it. Stationary has become a commentary on the social dynamic of the American people’s bullheadedness, and those who took the pandemic seriously from the start in hopes that life would return to normal soon have been waiting a very long time indeed.