Abbey Drucker is Finding Love in a Pandemic

Abbey Drucker, the New York-based photographer, has debuted a new photo series that will make you feel all the feels. “Love in a Pandemic” is inspired by the first Valentine’s Day that we’ve all experienced during a global pandemic. Created on the week of February 7th, 2021, Drucker walked around Tompkins Square Park in New York City and photographed six real-life couples, enjoying a little bit of love in an otherwise bleak year. While we’re all isolated for the foreseeable future, as Drucker so eloquently puts it, “Right now, kissing feels more dangerous than sex.”

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Oskar (Vu/They) & Alexa (They/Them) 

“We met on Tinder mid-late January of 2018. Alexa is my life partner; the one I want to grow old with, the one I want to live many lives with, a companion, a teacher, an eager learner, a dear friend. We have something unique and special and they’re truly an important presence. “

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Tristan (She/They) & Anna (She/Her)

“We met in the fall of 2015. I had gone to visit a former friend, and Tristan joined us for breakfast the next morning. To me, love is every emotion possible braided into one. It is elation and humiliation and bravery and grief and everything else under the sun. It’s a glimpse into infinity in the eyes of another person.”

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Jason (He/Him) & Vertity (She/Her)

“We met at an event through a mutual friend. We were friends for about a year until we started dating in 2017. The pandemic and quarantine has made us better listeners and communicators in our relationship. We are more empathetic of others.”

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Janel (She/Her) & Andew (He/Him)

“We met bowling on February 21, 2020 through work. He was bowling and I was talking to our team and caught Andrew staring at me. I said, “Do you like puppets?” He replied, “I am a puppet.” (He literally played a puppet in Frozen on Broadway. I was very confused, but we connected and the rest was history. Every step of the way has felt correct, fiercely vulnerable, and it’s the best relationship I’ve ever had. He allows me to be myself, encourages me to pursue my heart’s desires, and has shown up for me, as I’m constantly triggered by past trauma but I’m doing the work, and he loves me through it with unwavering support.”

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Jonzu (He/Him) & Zachary (He/Him)

“Zach and I met in October of 2020 during a mutual friend’s get together. My best friend and I spotted Zach and made a bet on who would get the guy. After a few shots and an improv kiss, I won, and months later here we are. The pandemic gave us an opportunity to get to know one another better. Neither of us were out trying to meet and date a ton of people, since we were trying to minimize the risk of contracting the virus. So, we really got to know and invest in one another.”

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Ta’Lor (They/Them) & Simbaa (He/Him)

“We met through friends in May of 2018 and reconnected in June of 2019. We’ve come to the realize that truly living in the moment with each other is one of the most important aspects of our relationship. Because we don’t know what life will be like after we’ve reached our new normal, so just taking in every moment with each other now is something that’s savoring our relationship.”