In an artistic response to the temporary closure of museums due to the Covid-19 pandemia, Mario García Torres occupied the Museo Jumex’s first-floor gallery, using the space as a studio to make and display new work. Throughout June 2020, the artist at work and the resulting paintings were on view via the museum’s website.

The project was conceived by the artist as a personal reflection on the effect and affects of Covid-19 on artists and cultural institutions. Certain themes emerged such as presence and absence, togetherness and distance, and links between the past and future of art practice.

García Torres invited a single visitor to attend the physical exhibition—the artist and sometime collaborator, Sol Oosel. The day-long visit García Torres and Oosel turned into a improvised recording of ambient sound, spoken word and music. Based on these improvisations, the resulting soundtrack is presented here as an echo of the ephemeral project where sound is now present in place of the image, and visitors occupy the gallery in place of the lone artist.