Paige Torosantucci

Cleansed

An acrylic painting of my bathroom faucet conveys the ideals of cleanliness before and after COVID-19.

“Throughout the beginning of the pandemic, panic was rampant throughout the world. People scrambled to get cleaning supplies, and the masses competed for that last roll of toilet paper. The chaos that ensued in every country, city and small town led to a shortage in many cleaning products like Lysol wipes, which were almost impossible to find. The need to feel clean, sterile, even surged as the pandemic continued. I chose to paint the faucet of a shower to emphasize this obsession with cleanliness. Many were afraid when reports came out about how long COVID would linger on clothes, grocery products and skin. The bathroom became a favourite room in every house since it could calm the minds of those afraid and create a circle of cleanliness. Many become accustomed to running to the shower after returning from any location outside their homes to relieve themselves of the anxiety of germs. Those who were already fearful of germs found themselves with the overwhelming urge to escape from this terrifying disease as it broke out. Many struggle to feel at ease without the company of a shower or a faucet they could wash themselves. Before the pandemic, the bathroom was nothing more than a bathroom, a place we never gave a second thought to in our home. We could never have guessed that what once was an inconsequential room we would use as needed would become a haven from the atomic bomb that blasted the world into fear and a deep longing for cleanliness we have today. Now, the bathroom has become a powerful reminder of the ongoing fear of the outside. It will forever be engraved in our minds as a place of comfort amongst the chaos, a haven, an escape. ”