Staying Connected

I hope this latest blog post finds you well or at least coping. I am used to spending a lot of time alone as I work from my home studio so that hasn’t been a problem for me, however my husband is also working from home now, so I actually have to get used to having more company than usual. There are a few things I miss – going out for coffee, the cinema, restaurants and seeing art in person and not through the screen. Believe me, I am very aware how I lucky I am that these are the only things I miss. I have been making time to get into the studio and I have been working in my sketch book. It took a little while to get into some kind of routine though.

Real life has gone virtual and like millions of others I have learnt to use Zoom so I can catch up with my Thrive Art Studio group, it is really nice to check in with them and hear how they are handling this time. I have also discovered that Youtube has life drawing sessions online which is awesome to get some practice in. As all of the summer art events are cancelled or postponed, online events and exhibitions are set to be the norm. The Victoria Arts Council is sharing local art through a new online magazine called ‘Until’ and instagram accounts like Quarantonics and the Quarantined Art Gallery have emerged to help artists share their work.

I love how artists are looking after each other right now – sending each other art postcards, selling art to support other artists or turning their skills to making masks. Even just being open and honest about feeling crappy or unfocused can help reality check the expectation that this is the time to be super productive and write that novel or learn a new language. I am really grateful for my online art community and I feel like connections are being reinforced.  I hope that this is something that continues when we get to the other side of this, in the meantime, take care of yourselves!