THE COLOR OF THESE TIMES

Two years into the pandemic, blue face masks have become so common that I barely notice them anymore. And yet, I decided one day that I needed to know the name of this color. So I went to several hardware stores, picked out the paint chips that were the closest matches, laughed at the complete mismatch between our experiences of the pandemic and the names of the color we wear over our faces each day… and made this book.

Archival inkjet prints with stiff leaf accordion binding: 5 x 5 x 1”

The complete text of the book (and a list of blue paint color names!) is below the image gallery.

THE COLOR OF THESE TIMES

It all started with the masks. We thought they would be with us for a short while, yet here they still are: a sea of blue faces, anonymous, expressionless, blue.

I needed to know: what is this blue called? It must have a name. And so I went out to find it.

This blue has many names, actually, but non of them feel true: none of them reflect the fear and anonymity of the masked reality we’re living now.

Maybe someday it will be safe to discard the masks and live lives defined by other colors, other experiences.

Maybe then, we can feel like we inhabit a sea of tranquility, a pool party, an afternoon siesta. Maybe then we can dream again, and wonder what awaits in the wild blue yonder.

But until then, we’re all hidden behind blue, this blue, the color of these times.

PAINT COLOR NAMES:

Sea of Tranquility, Dreaming of Blue, Wild Blue Yonder, Pool Party, Afternoon Siesta, Peaceful Blue, By the Sea, Yeah Baby, Blue My Mind, Blue Firmament, Rushing River, Hang Gliding, Atlantis Blue, Blink My Baby Blues, Paris Runway, Fiji Atoll, Scenic Sky, Tropical Lagoon.