I go to the local park everyday with my sketch book after the dreadful morning shift at my part time cafe job. Sitting by a tree in some shade to see the masquerade. The hundreds, even thousands, of masks people put on just to appease the characters in their day to day living. I draw the masks I see in these people.
Some bold, others frail masks to cover up what they are afraid to show to others as well as adhere to seeming “normal”. Today was different at the park with all the masks in my vision. There was one individual without a mask, nothing covering them presented just as they are.
I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was the first time I've seen a mask less person in this park. I kept glancing over because they had piqued my interest. They look back in my direction multiple times. As I thought they were packing up to leave they started to travel in my direction while looking in my general area.
“Hey, what are you drawing?” they asked
“Just some mask concepts,” I said.
“Oh cool are they from people in the park” they say as they sit near me under the tree glancing over at my sketchbook.
“ something like that haha” I was extremely nervous, no one had noticed me to this degree in the park before.
“ Sorry, let me introduce myself, I'm Flo. I am also an artist. What's your name? ” they said with big smile on their face
“Esa, nice to meet you.” This is the first time I introduced myself to someone new in months. It was refreshing.
Flo and I spent the rest of the week meeting up daily under the tree conversing about art and how we got started, on the eighth day Flo asked me.
“What do you see when you are making these masks” they tilt their head in curiosity
I paused for a moment, thinking if I should share what these masks truly represented to me and why I made them. At that moment I decided to take a chance and share what I saw with someone else .
“ I make the masks as visual representations of the masks people wear to navigate through their interactions with others in their day to day life”
As I finished there was a pause as Flo stared into my eyes as well as took a closer look at me then proceeded to ask me.
“Do I have a mask?” with their eyes widening.
“ No when I look at you see no mask I only see you”
They seemed disappointed with that response, their smile slowly faded into a frown out of frustration.
“Let me draw your mask,” Flo said, regaining their smile.
I was confused. My mask? I never thought I had a mask because I don’t put up an act to others yet at the same time I don't talk to too many other people.
“Uh okay.” I said as I handed them my sketch book as well as drawing pens.
Flow stared at me trying to really capture every detail from what I could see. Drawing for what felt as if it was an 2 hour long session in reality was only 30 minutes
They handed me my pens back but not my sketch book
“Are you ready for the big reveal”
they said with a big smile on their face from ear to ear
“Yeah I am ready as ever”
knowing I was the most nerve racked I could ever been up to this point
“Close your eyes” Flo said
I close my eyes anxiously waiting to be told to open with nothing but anxious thoughts going through my mind “ what if it’s a scary mask” “what if it’s an evil mask” “what if it's a monster?”
“Open!” Flo said
My eyes shoot open seeing my sketch book bindings at first then I look at the mask the first details that caught my eye was what looked to be at top hat figure then panning my focus downwards seeing two eye holes surrounded by feathers and no opening for the mouth but just feathers
“Can I ask why there are so many feathers?” I said anxiously
“Well you’re the observer you don’t interact or play part in the masquerade you observe as well as make judgements based on what you see, watching the events unfold from a distance ”
Flo said
“ What about the top hat?” I said
“You are the observer yet also the conductor of the masquerade these masks wouldn’t exist without you, your emotions judgements as well as more characteristics from yourself are in these mask their fragments of you not the attendees but you and only you” Flo explained
It felt like time had stopped I looked around the masks around me were slowly changing themselves in mirrors all reflecting back at my mask that had changed into collage of fragments of all the masks I was seeing earlier
My heart sank. I started to feel chills down my neck . The words flo spoke opened my eyes to the fact I couldn't see.
“Thank you for this Flo” I said
I grabbed my things as I was taking off I heard in the distance
“Your sketchbook? “ Flo said
“Hold on to it for me” I said
That day the masquerade came to a close. Days that followed afterwards I started to take up my co workers on their offers to plans after work as days went on the masks faded my eyes felt refreshed and cleared.
