An Artistic Take on Coronavirus

Amitabh Verma, associate professor at the College of Environment and Design, has been promoting drawing and sketching as tools for management of stress and anxiety, and has taught several workshops at UGA and elsewhere. Now he’s using those skills in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

To “keep [himself] focused and creatively engaged in the present situation,” Verma has translated the virus into a classical interpretation of struggle. The series of images, which can be seen on his Instagram, aims to “reinterpret how medieval artists represented the victory of good over evil, which could be a dragon, the devil, an enemy or even disease.”

View the series by visiting Verma’s Instagram,@red.corvus. The series began on April 1 and at the time of writing consists of seven images.

The images show St. George in a variety of styles and locations slaying the dragon currently tormenting our world. To liken the threat to others found in classical art, one cheeky caption reads, “St. George slaying the COVIDragon.”

While the art in this series is a far cry from most of what you’ll see at the College of Environment and Design, Verma is nonetheless using his artistry to shape the world around him and promote a refreshing sense of levity to our current situation.