Beyond Two Dimensions
After the nightmare of the Covid pandemic became less intense and order was returning to society, Marcy McChesney started thinking about the challenges that everyone had endured in one way or another and how they had adapted to a new world of uncertainty. The pandemic had interrupted the daily routines, careers, comfort levels and well-being of many, and provided an opportunity to reevaluate their priorities. Some individuals flourished and took this opportunity to utilize their creativity and determination to pivot to a different field and higher quality of life. She was interested in hearing their stories and creating art based on their experiences.
Thanks to a City of San Antonio Department of Arts & Culture Individual Artist Grant, Marcy was able to turn this idea into a full scale project.
She began to interview San Antonio individuals whose lives had shifted dramatically during Covid, resulting in a positive change, including career, living situations, relationships and priority shifts. She commissioned San Antonio photographer Deborah Keller-Rihn to photograph the subjects, and then she created collages based on their photographs along with images specific to San Antonio and their individual stories.
The exhibition will feature the collages along with their accompanying individual stories.
There will be an interactive element to the exhibition, where people are invited to share their own Covid experiences. Marcy plans to continue her project, creating more collages based on others’ stories.
Zeke’s Story:
I was on spring break vacation with my family when the news of Covid hit. I went back to work as a manager of a popular restaurant not knowing what to expect. We closed our doors the next day and soon after that I was put on furlough. Needless to say, this was a scary time. A few weeks later, we reopened for limited service with limited staff, inventory and a menu offering to go orders only.
About a month later, we completely re-opened our doors but were still understaffed, customers were unwilling to cooperate with Covid guidelines, and I was working up to sixty hours a week in order to fill in any missing gaps.
Meanwhile, I was informed of a software upgrade that TDOT was going to adopt and needed
users to support. I continued working through the hardships of Restaurant activity during the Covid lockdowns at the restaurant until I just couldn't tolerate the added pressure and long hours anymore.
I decided to leave the position I had held for 10 years due to
unsafe, unstable and a no longer rewarding work environment. I continued studying and learning the software with online guides and a close friend to reach out to for support. Eventually, I was able to earn certifications with the software which eventually led me to the trainer/engineer consultant position for a company based in Austin while working from home. I am now working as an IT consultant for TDOT supporting this and
other related software for all employees that require support.
My new career is much less stressful with plenty of opportunity for growth. I am now able to spend quality time with my family & be more involved in my sons' upbringing. I have a rewarding career with opportunities for advancement, I'm no longer enduring abuse to my body from daily physical labor and most importantly I have peace of mind and satisfaction that I made the right decision.
Looking back, it's hard to believe how much I was missing out on and how much stress and time away from my family I endured in my restaurant position.