Dreaming in Room No. 315

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, I travelled to London, arriving in a new country under lockdown. Isolated in an unfamiliar place, I found myself confined to a single room, unable to explore the city or move freely. That sense of restriction was overwhelming—making me feel both sad and anxious.

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In the midst of this stillness, I wanted to find a way to connect with the world outside. My window became my focus. Every day, I took photos of the park, roads, and houses visible from my room. These glimpses offered a sense of connection, but I started to wonder: what if I could bring the outside into my space, not just through photographs but in a more immersive way?

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That’s when I decided to transform my room into a camera obscura. Using black chart paper and bin liners from the only open hardware shop in the area, I began covering my large window to block out all the light. It was a slow, deliberate process, but as the room darkened, the outside world began to project itself onto my walls, ceiling, and furniture. Suddenly, the park was on my walls, cars moved across my ceiling, and the sun set on my cupboard.

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Sitting in that darkened room, I felt time start to shift. Without the usual markers of sunrise and sunset, time seemed to stretch and compress in strange ways. It made me think about how much our sense of time depends on the outside world, and how isolating it can feel when those connections are disrupted.

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This work became a way to bridge the gap between the outside world and my inner space. It was about creating a sense of presence and connection during a time of isolation, about finding comfort and creativity in an unexpected place.

Looking back, this piece marked a turning point for me as an artist. It was the first time I truly explored the idea of liminality—the space between worlds, between inside and outside, between isolation and connection. Dreaming in Room No. 315 taught me how to transform limitation into possibility and to embrace the quiet, in-between moments as opportunities for reflection and creation.