How has the pandemic changed us, and what tools might we use to understand these changes? The mask is a useful figure in following these shifts. In March of 2020 when the first U.S. COVID-19 wave hit New York City, where I live, the streets were silent save the sound of ambulance sirens. Initially, wearing masks was verboten for non-clinicians. Then it became a voluntary act for the civic-minded, and then a mandate. In the present limbo of August 2021, as I write this piece, depending upon the context a mask can signal any number of things, from health status to political stance, to the daily progression of the Delta variant, to the intersection of global, federal, state, and local guidance and regulations—all in constant flux. And while living outside of societal norms has often been symbolized by masking (western gunslingers, superhero vigilantes, bank robbers), such a stance is now more likely struck by refusing to mask in the face of policy. How might the mask represent the changes wrought by the pandemic, and the possibilities it offers for further transformation?
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