Aisthesis

1

Volume 12, 2021

AnxietyAnxiety
By: Aliyah Noh

 



Aisthesis

2

Volume 12, 2021

Anxiety

 This piece is titled “Anxiety” and was created in 2020. It is a diptych on toned paper and was created us-
ing charcoal and pastels. I created this piece amid the COVID pandemic when I was only a freshman in college. 
This piece was made for one of Drawing courses, however it was done in the basement of my home, without 
the use of a studio. It represents the emotions that I was feeling at the time, both personally and in relation to 
the pandemic. The tension between the knives and the balloons below were the physical manifestation of how 
I was feeling at the time. I wanted to show others what it was like to live with anxiety, especially in a time like 
this.  I explored that feeling of being on the edge of something life-changing, whether positive or negative, and 
the juxtaposition of the sharp edges of the knives and the round suppleness of the balloons portrayed that for 
me. Even the creation of this piece was stressful, having knives hanging from my ceiling and balloons all over 
the floor.