2020-04-18

On the eve of the end of the fifth week of social distancing in Lexington, more folks are beginning to publicly ask for advice about coping with daily routines during this pandemic, about staying positive, about managing work and family life, about managing being unemployed, about managing living alone. Some resort to making food, posting pictures of food, or ordering food for others, including Quarantine Cakes with practical advice like “Don’t Disappoint Andy. #TeamKentucky.” Some make cutouts of people they miss, print photographs of loved ones to stick on a fridge, share Facetime meals with friends near and far. Others focus on helping people who need help, wanting to keep busy, wanting to make a difference. Through it all, we keep practicing social distancing—because, as Governor Beshear keeps reminding us, our response to COVID-19 is a test of our humanity.

Lexington in the Time of COVID-19 is an artwork about people practicing social distancing at a time of a deadly virus. And also offering kindness.

Kurt Gohde and Kremena Todorova capture photographs at the periphery of American culture, where drag queens, discarded couches, and abandoned motel signs exist.