The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Thematic Issues and Form-Making in Visual Art (Based on the Works of Andrii Petrovskyi)

Abstract

The article examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic – an event that profoundly affected global art communities – on the transformation of studio glass art, with particular attention to the technical, aesthetic, and organizational aspects of artistic practice. The research analyzes how glass artists adapted their creative processes to pandemic conditions, including shifts in thematic focus, the increasing reliance on digital forms of communication, and strategies adopted to overcome economic challenges. The closure of over 70% of glass studios, the shutdown of Murano furnaces, and restrictions on collaborative work in hot-shop environments compelled artists to turn to individual techniques such as casting, kiln-forming, lampworking, and cold-working. These circumstances fostered a new creative trajectory, characterized by the emergence of small-scale, intimate works that reflect experiences of isolation, psychological tension, and renewal. Aesthetically, pandemic-era glass art engaged with themes of fragility, transparency, separation, and biomorphic forms, as demonstrated in works by Luke Jerram, Angela Palmer, and a range of interdisciplinary installations. The Ukrainian context – illustrated through the work of Andrii Petrovskyi – reveals a shift toward a therapeutic colour palette and large, monolithic forms that symbolize inner transformation and hope. Petrovskyi’s practice exemplifies the resilience and innovative capacity of the glass art community during this unprecedented global crisis.