24 the hospital or dying – but paying the consequences of stupid people out there who have no clue about surviving alone (or with your relatives), it was too much as well.” Alone addresses a dilemma: a double bind situation of being caught up in between responsibility for others yet feeling the need for individual freedom. Kae admits having mixed feelings, too: “somehow I managed to pull off some interesting things that I now reflect on and have some sort of bitter-sweet guilt attached to. This is after really seeing the effects this whole shit had on everybody, including family members outside of my household.” 25 The main thing the pandemic has taught me is that we really took even our most basic freedoms for granted, whether it is the freedom to travel, the freedom to paint outside, and even the freedom to spend time with the ones we love. Wane I would love to reunite with people, ...party, and have the freedom to explore places without fear. Cloak 26 ANTICIPATION IS THE GREATEST JOY – OUTLOOK “I would love to reunite with people, ...party, and have the freedom to explore places without fear,” Cloak bursts out in response to what he looks forward to. Post simply emphasizes continuity: “No lockouts, the game don’t stop.” “Travel. Travel again. I’m pretty sure my first destination will be Germany,” LaFranz states. The answer is unisono – Laia, Ribes, Pheo, Alone, Wane, and Func want to see the world and, even more, embrace their friends. Humans are social beings, after all. “I want to take my kids and wife out to a really nice dinner. I used to spoil them when it came to going out to eat. It’s something I hold really close, as I never really had that structure as a kid where we sat down to enjoy a meal as a family. So watching my family enjoy themselves together is something I value,” Kae shares. Drawing a conclusion as of now seems hard since the pandemic is still not over. The virus or its mutations might become endemic. Yet, some things are certain. For better or worse, Corona will be a catalyst in some aspects. Digitalization took a big step forward. While tourism and imports slowed down, at least nature could catch a short break. Global repercussions are undeniable and inevitable. Thus, the best thing to do is to concentrate on positive aspects. Try to benefit from the extra time. Invest energy into your passion; maybe go painting more. Take a moment to rethink, focus on what can be done now – like sketching, for instance. 28 Montana Cans Lockdown on lock
24 Caught in traffic, RIBES manages to spread some color in an otherwise gray situation. 25 No hidden message here as LAIA brings another smile with some style. 26 Tuning the the canvas skills, one of many pieces created by WANE during the lockdown period. 27 Making the important decisions, WANE looks over his Montana BLACK and GOLD cans to see which comes next. 28 WANE reminding us to “Just Skate” when the chips are down. 27 We encourage you to be creative! This applies to both professional and purely passionate contexts of your artistic output. Quite a few writers managed to invest their surplus of time wisely. Graffiti media flourished in 2020. There was time for creation, curation, and consumption, whether magazines, blogs, books, videos, and podcasts. “I took the opportunity to put together a fanzine-book called Graffiti Minded. For a long time, I wanted to do something on paper, and thanks to the lockdown, I did it together with all my beautiful friends around the globe, more or less locked, like me,” Alone says. “...Better times will come,” Laia is certain. “For sure, I painted way less compared to the previous year, and every action now considers new elements. But those new things are not always unpleasant! Like, wearing a mask everywhere is not that bad,” Alone concludes with a smile. Wane has humble reasoning, “the main thing the pandemic has taught me is that we really took even our most basic freedoms for granted, whether it is the freedom to travel, the freedom to paint outside, and even the freedom to spend time with the ones we love.” Like, wearing a mask everywhere is not that bad. Alone 28 Montana Cans Lockdown on lock 29
