Shadowbanned in a Time of Monsters

Renata Fernandez's solo show SHADOWBANNED IN A TIME OF MONSTERS will open with an exhibition of her paintings and sculpture on Saturday 16th August 2025 in a all day event which will also be fundraising for medical aid for Gaza (via Doctors worldwide) with an arty raffle.

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The title draws from Antonio Gramsci’s famous phrase, "Now is the time of monsters," reflecting societal upheaval where old orders crumble and unsettling new forces emerge. For Fernández, this"time of monsters" mirrors the digital and physical repression faced by those bearing witness to Gaza’s devastation. The exhibition features two central works:1. "My Social Media Feed in Ink" (2021–ongoing): Over 200 small ink drawings appropriating images from social media, started during the pandemic’s isolation and escalating into a harrowing archive of Gaza’s genocide. Recognisable to many,these images confront the algorithmic suppression of shared outrage.2. "Artist-Made Shelter for a Man-Made Tragedy Such as Genocide": A large diptych painting doubling as a shelter’s wall within the gallery. Filled with salvaged comforts—family photos, makeshift "windows," a lamp—it asks: Can art offer respite amid relentless violence? The work echoes Palestinian resilience, where beauty persists even in ruins. Art as Witness, Shelter, and DefianceFernández’s practice interrogates art’s role in times of crisis. The shelter installation, though "useless" in practical terms, embodiesthe I Ching’s Hexagram 22 (Adornment): a tribute to dignity upheld through creativity. Meanwhile, her ink drawings archive collective grief—and the shadow-banning of dissent.

Renata says:"The body of work of this solo exhibition is all about Gaza as I wanted to reflect the time I am living right now, this time of monsters, of live-streamed genocide. I want to help effectively somehow and thought of an arty raffle of donated art works by conscientious artists. We decided to fundraise for Doctors Worldwide."