So far, the corona crisis and mandatory studying at home has brought out mostly positives for Manuel: support from school with homework, by neighbours while quarantined, and a boost for digital challenges and relationships
Text und Bild: Matthias Neff
«In a way … it was not such a big problem. A lot of my work is about thinking and many times doesn’t involve going to the studio or using [Campus] facilities so I could continue working at home. I work a lot with found objects and already had some at home I could use. Of course, there are many students in my class who would usually use the workshops and had to rethink their work and processes.
The school decided to continue with all the classes we already had and they really have been doing a good job in terms of the information they give. In addition, the director decided to send us, each week, a package with information, texts, and videos – a collection of materials – that we could study all week. So we have had very good input from the teachers.
To be honest, I feel like I’m one of those people: I discovered that my life after and before the quarantine was more or less the same. Before, I was already spending a lot of time at home, even if I was going to school every week. In a way, now I’m maybe even more in contact with my friends and family than before. For instance, because of this whole situation, my family decided to do a weekly video-dinner. So, each Friday, I sit down in front of my computer to eat with my family.
I think this was also a good moment to dedicate myself a bit more to digital relationships: I never was very much into WhatsApp, Facebook, etc., but now I’ve decided to give it a shot. Also, I think I’m now more receptive to challenges, like publishing works on Facebook. This interview itself could be something that, at first, I would rather not do, either because I would be too lazy or scared that I might look stupid or say something silly. But this was a moment that pushed me into saying yes to this kind of challenge.
My girlfriend was sick in the beginning, a bit after the first month [the virus hit]. We don’t know if it really was corona, but we still had to take all the measures we were told to when calling the support hotline. This meant that neither of us could leave the house. My girlfriend had to be in her room for one week, so I had to organise myself to prepare her food, deliver it at the door and clean everything. This was a bit of a tough moment, but nothing impossible. After a week, she was already feeling better. But the thing was, we would have to still maintain another week of isolation. We had to ask our neighbours to go shopping for us, which they generously agreed to do. I think many people were very generous during this time and many positive things came out. For example, the movements across Basel and Switzerland that were devoted to basically helping one another.»
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In an ongoing series and from different campuses and disciplines, students give their personal accounts of how corona has affected their lives. The interview was recorded on 18 May 2020.
What experiences have you made during the lockdown? – Please let us know and write a comment.
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