We never really thought about the freedom we had before the COVID-19 pandemic hit us. We may have taken it for granted—but this year taught us that even the things that we find completely normal can be taken away from us. It’s been months since we haven’t been living under many restrictions, and illustrator Simo Liu has perfectly captured how we all feel in her latest series.
The Los Angeles-based artist created a series of illustrations called Escape where she shows so-called disaster rooms and characters trying to escape from them. “These rooms represent natural and man-made disasters that occurred in 2020,” Simo tells Creative Boom.
“From coronavirus, locust plagues, forest fires, floods, and earthquakes. COVID-19, in particular, led to limited flights, travel bans, social distancing rules, and more—all leaving us feeling trapped,” she continues.
She wanted to acknowledge everyone who feels overwhelmed right now and shares the feeling of wanting to escape reality. The inspiration for her illustrations comes from Bong Joon-ho’s movie Parasite and Maurits Cornelis Escher’s graphic paintings. Scroll down to see her work and find more on Instagram.
