Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House

Stuck in the kennel

When news came in that millions of people, first in China and then in Italy, had been placed in strict virus quarantine, few in Australia thought that would happen here.

Infection numbers rising and spreading around the globe gave us an inkling of what lay ahead. 'The Pando' had arrived. The nation seemed to respond as one – rushing out to clear store shelves of toilet paper. Home became the new office, school and gym. Hope and fear went head to head. We went 'doom scrolling' and added new words like 'iso' and 'sanny' to our daily lives.

A man sits on the toilet pulling the last piece of toilet paper off the roll. He says, 'The end is nigh!'

End Times

John Shakespeare, The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 March 2020

Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. A man on a small pony chases them holding a toilet roll banner labelled, 'Panic buying'. Text at the top: 'The Fifth Horseman'.

The Apocalypse Handicap

Andrew Dyson, The Sydney Morning Herald, 4 March 2020

Two panels. First panel: Daniel Andrews says to three people, 'You need to change your behaviour to what you were doing before'. Second panel: same people hoard supermarket supplies. Andrews thinks, 'Damn'.

The Second Wave of Hoarding

Matt Golding, The Sydney Morning Herald, 23 June 2020

Two dogs with muzzles look at two people walking wearing masks. Dogs say, 'I call it poetic justice'.

I Call It Poetic Justice

John Ditchburn, The Courier (Ballarat), 31 July 2020

Four panels. Three panels: a woman walks past societal issues not caring. Last panel: the woman is furious about a compulsory mask-wearing sign outside the store she is about to enter.

Wrongs and Rights

Fiona Katauskas, Eureka Street, 28 July 2020

A man works from home for five days over five panels. The man deteriorates each day. On the last day, he's lying on the floor holding a sock puppet up to his computer screen.

Life in Lockdown

ROY, Self-published, 16 April 2020

A woman is on the phone saying, 'We're in isolation Beryl; I'm flattening the curve and Norm is fattening the curve...' A man, Norm, sits on a chair eating a burger.

Flattening the Curve

Michael Leunig, The Sydney Morning Herald, 6 April 2020

12 panels contain 12 funny stories about pets during the pandemic when their owners worked from home.

Pets of the Pandemic

First Dog on the Moon, The Guardian Australia, 30 March 2020

A person peers out from a hole in a fort made of toilet paper. The toilet paper fort is set up in the living room.

TP Fort

Glen Le Lievre, Patreon, 30 June 2020

An anxiety meter with varying levels to measure 'Today's anxiety level'. It is styled as a cutout, and suggests attaching the needle to point to where their anxiety level is.

Today’s Anxiety Level

Cathy Wilcox, The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 August 2020

Joseph Lyons stands on 'Mount Somewhere-or-other' pointing to the sky. Around him are various levels of alarm. Behind is Parliament House, it is 'Closed 'til further notice'.

A Lost Soul Wailing

Will Mahony, Daily News, 28 January 1939

Five people touch their faces in different ways. Each person has a cross in a box above them. Text reads: 'Some expressions to avoid'.

Some Expressions to Avoid

Andrew Weldon, The Big Issue, 15 March 2020

A unicorn lies slumped on a couch with rainbows flying out a window from it. The unicorn looks glumly at a computer screen. The rest of the cartoon is black and white.

Working from Home

Glen Le Lievre, Patreon, 3 March 2020

Two people in lab coats stare at screens showing people hoarding toilet paper. They reflect that since running out of toilet paper, people shaking hands 'hasn't been an issue'.

Untitled

Johannes Leak, The Australian, 3 April 2020