Healthcare is Human

In Collections: Creativity in the Time of COVID-19

Copyright Status: In Copyright

Date: 2019/2022

Artists: Humphreys, Molly

Subjects: COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020- , in art

Material Type: Photographs

Language: No linguistic content

Extent: 10 photographs

Exhibit Label: As a self-employed photographer and single mother, I sat at home and worried about how I could care for my family without work. I had the constant nagging thought of "how in the world could a photographer be helpful in a situation like this?" During lockdown, my friend who is a doctor called me and told me about an idea he had. He wanted to go into the hospital to talk to the workers about their experiences during the pandemic. He wanted to have me capture images while he recorded interviews. Together, we created an audio and video record of our local pandemic response in West Virginia. This got me out of my house, helped me understand how I can keep my family and I safe, and gave me a sense of purpose during lockdown. --Label design by exhibit curator Nancy DeJoy. Labels written by Ben Lash and his team in consultation with artist statements.

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m51v5ff7b

Page Info

1 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 01

Pictured in black and white, a healthcare worker wearing safety glasses and a surgical mask holds two small vials in front of his face. His face is the focal point of the image, blurring his hands and the vials so the vials are ghostly and nearly indistinguishable.

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m5qz25j41

2 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 02

Pictured in black and white, a weary-looking woman wearing a dark shirt and bright earrings looks down with her head slightly tilted, her eyes mostly closed standing outdoors. Her hair and shoulders blend against a dark backdrop. To her left, the image is splintered, interrupting the scene with an exposed brick surface and a crack in the wall. To the left, the woman's portrait is repeated, darker and slightly transparent.

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m5v11zm8x

3 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 03

Pictured in black and white from the shoulders up, a healthcare worker looks straightforward, her expression unreadable beneath a surgical mask. She is lit harshly from the left, casting the right side of her face into shadow. A floral headband holds back her hair, there is a stethoscope draped over her neck resting on her shoulders, and her surroundings are shrouded in shadow

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m5513xx1q

4 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 04

Pictured in black and white from the knees up, a person stands in a brightly lit hospital hallway, waving to the viewer. Their clothes are all black, a striking difference from their white surroundings. Their shirt reads "I am freaking essential", and they are wearing a black COVID face mask that reads "black lives matter".

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m51r6r203

5 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 05

Pictured in black and white from the shoulders up, a healthcare worker looks in the distance. Soft light illuminates the top of her face, highlighting her eyes and contrasting with the black COVID mask she is wearing that throws the rest of her face into shadow. She is wearing a white turtleneck. The background is dark and out of focus with a bright spot in the center.

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m5x061d5s

6 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 06

Pictured in black and white, three people sit in an office setting. In focus is a man in a white shirt wearing a dark COVID mask sitting in front of a microphone. The person on the left holds their hand over their mouth, and is wearing a surgical mask. The person in the center is faced away from the camera, their form in shadow. The room is lit from a bright window in the background that puts the scene slightly in shadow.

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m55q4vn1k

7 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 07

Pictured in black and white, a healthcare worker leans against a window, their reflection a ghostly mirror of themself. They are wearing glasses, a surgical mask, scrubs with a hospital logo below the shoulder, and a nametag that reads "Hospice", Lilian A", "RN", "registered nurse". The light from the window illuminates their head and shoulders, leaving their body and surroundings in shadow. The scenery outside of the window is blurred and indistinguishable.

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m55h7fv6s

8 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 08

Pictured in black and white, four people wearing COVID masks stand in a blurred parking lot in front of a stop sign, surrounded by safety cones. On the left, a person in a camouflage military uniform stands next to a stopped car, reviewing a stack of papers. In the center, a man stands waiting with his hands together, and behind him stands another person in a military uniform. To the right, another military person has their hand extended, holding a clipboard in their other hand.

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m5qr4rr7w

9 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 09

Pictured in black and white, a healthcare worker sits with their hands laced together, looking towards the viewer. Soft light from a window on the left illuminates the left side of their face and their body, leaving the right side of their face in shadow. They are wearing a COVID mask.They are leaned forward slightly, their shoulders looking tense. Behind them, in shadow, is a door.

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m59c6w22d

10 of 10: Healthcare is Human. Part 10

Pictured in black and white, a healthcare worker looks into the distance. Half of their face is covered by a surgical mask, but the part of their face that is visible looks concerned or conflicted. They are wearing scrubs. Light comes from the left, illuminating their face. In the shadowy background is a door with a label too hazy to read.

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Extent: 1 photograph

Permalink: https://n2t.net/ark:/85335/m5028sf00