My paintings tend to be a map of my life and my thinking, and these are what I spent my time doing during an odd time in our history.

My last show opened March 7, 2020. For many of us that was the last time we were together indoors in a large group. I treasure those memories.

Within two weeks of that opening we were under a Stay Home order to reduce the spread of Covid and in early April I began to mail out drawings, a poem, and a note to friends, family, people I wanted to thank. I sent out over 200 drawings. The Pandemic Drawing Project brought me joy and took all the creativity I had during that period.

Except for one painting, this show was created entirely in 2021. Painting during the pandemic – like a lot of things – was challenging. For me the pandemic combined with the election, the lies about vote fraud, the attack on our democracy – it was hard to turn away from the relentlessly bad and strange news. So I focused on health, family, friends, and witnessed as history unfolded around us.

Here’s how I found my way back to my work.

My studio is on Samish Island on the coast of Washington State and the Skagit Land Trust purchased a beach on Padilla Bay near my house. I started going there nearly every day at the end of my run or walk, to see what was up with the water and the sky that day. Then I bought muck boots and started to venture out onto the tidelands to have a better view of the water flowing over sand and rocks. I’m especially interested in reflections and when I’m ankle deep in water I can see more, and more interesting, reflections. Especially sky and cloud reflections.

This show began with muck boots, standing ankle deep in salt water, watching the patterns of water and ripples of fluid reflections. It brought me joy and hope.

Lisa McShane

Lisa McShane “January 6, 2021″, Oil on Linen on Wood Panel, 24″ x 40”, 2021

Lisa McShane “Beach”, Oil on Linen on Aluminum, 38″ x 54.25″ , 2021

Lisa McShane”Green Lake” Oil on Linen, 36″ x 36″, 2021

About the artist

Lisa uses layers of oil paint and glazing to capture deep waters, the pattern of waves on wet sand, and the eroded hills of the Pacific Northwest. Her paintings are abstracted, graphic, and focused on light and land and water.

In 2015 she was the Artist in Residence at Petrified Forest National Park and in 2017 was the Artist in Residence at Grand Canyon-Parshant National Monument. One of her paintings, The Sun Sets on the Slope of the Horse Heaven Hills, was on exhibit in the American Embassy in Yemen for several years and Mountains at Dusk is in the collection of the Washington State Governor’s Mansion in Olympia, Washington.

Lisa’s studio is on 15 acres of forest on Samish Island. She’s represented by Smith and Vallee Gallery in Edison, WA.

Lisa McShane

“FLUID REFLECTION”

October 1, 2021 – October 31, 2021

SMITH & VALEE GALLERY

Edison, Washington

Framing Specifications

METRO FLOATING FRAME

Deep Floating Profile: 124
Type: floating frame for 1-1/2″ deep painting
Wood & Finish:  ash frame with pickled white finish
Purchasing Option: unjoined frame cut to size with wedges
Framing Advice: Joining Wood Frames with wedges
Framing Advice: Fitting Floating Frames

This is a one of a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Lisa Golightly lives in Portland Oregon and has been a customer since 2012. Her work revolves around memory and how snapshots shape, influence, change and even create memory. She works with acrylic and high gloss enamel, using found photos to create work that is both anonymous in nature but also very personal.

This is her #artinthetimeofcorona story.

lisagolightlyart.com

How was Portland affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally? How have the fires affected you?

Portland is much like the rest of the country.  We shut down mid March and have slowly reopened some business in the last few months. My studio is here at my house. I converted the old detached garage in our backyard some years ago into my studio, so in many ways my days are the same.  My husband’s job has mostly been from home for years as well, the biggest change was my son and daughter’s school going online since mid March. Thankfully, they are both older and are able to independently work. We are safe here in Portland, though the smoke has been at hazardous levels for a week.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

I try. It pretty much consists of coffee/studio/lunch/coffee/studio.

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

Having a show to work towards has really been the best distraction, to be honest. It has kept me busy and focused. We also got a puppy. That has been the biggest amount of work/distraction of the past 6 months!

With museums and galleries closed are you seeing a shift to the internet for viewing/selling art?  How is this affecting you?

I think galleries and the art world in general have been moving online more and more, this has just sped up that change.

Do you see any positive changes for artists in a post pandemic world?

For me the biggest change is that I won’t be at my upcoming show in November at the George Billis Gallery in Los Angeles. This is disappointing but ultimately I know there will be future shows and this is just one moment.

This is a one of a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Bob Nugent lives in Healdsburg, CA and has been a customer for over 20 years. Brazil and the Amazon River Basin are the subject and inspiration for his work.

This is his #artinthetimeofcorona story.

bobnugentstudio.com

How was Healdsburg and northern California affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally?

The virus is here, but we live outside the small town of Healdsburg among the vines. When I go into town it seems the locals have adapted very well and they are all wearing masks. Most of the fatalities here in wine country have been in senior facilities. Normally there would be many tourists in town, but of course most are not traveling these days, myself included. I am normally in Brazil at this time of year, doing research for my work. I travel a lot during the year and have cancelled four trips this year myself. And we have the fires to contend with again this year. We were lucky to make it through the first round, but there are still two more months to go. Don’t let anyone tell you there is no climate change. The whole country is feeling it and will continue to suffer from it. 
 
Professionally not much has changed for me. We are fortunate to live in the wine country and my studio is at the back of our property. I work everyday, even when I don’t feel like painting I go to the studio and clean-up, sweep and look at the work, absorbing it while I am doing other things. I also have a 1947 Chevy Fleetmaster Woodie I am restoring which is a good diversion.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

My routine has managed to stay the same. I get up, drink coffee, read two newspapers, and then answer emails. I must have all of that out of the way before I cross the garden to the studio. My assistant Kara comes into her office at 10 am and we discuss the chores for the day. She keeps track of inventories with dealers, correspondence and helps me when I need her for other things. Her office is in the studio, but we are still social distancing. I paint until about 4pm when Kara goes home. It is a routine I have had for many years.

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

I am doing much more reading about the Amazon and keeping up with current articles about the situation there since I cannot be there myself. I have been working with friends and trying to protect the indigenous people throughout the region for the last 35 years. I make paintings about the destruction going on with the strip mining and deforestation. To unwind I cook dinner almost every night. My wife cleans up. It is a good arrangement.

With museums and galleries closed are you seeing a shift to the internet for viewing/selling art?  How is this affecting you?

This year I was to have two major solo shows of my work; one in Santa Clara, California at the Triton Museum of Art and the other in Brazil at the Museu de Arte Contemporânea de Sorocaba. A new publication was produced in conjunction with these planned shows. Both exhibitions have been postponed until next year. In addition, all my dealers are closed so there are no sales.  I’ve never tried selling my work online. I have found that if someone wants a painting with a fairly healthy price tag they want to see it in person, not on a small screen. In my early years I learned to budget my sales over a five year period buying supplies and frames with extra cash, so that when times are lean I can continue to live and work. It has served me well. I now have enough supplies to continue to paint for five years without any sales. It also helps to have a patron or two that continue to support you during these times. 

Do you see any positive changes for artists in a post pandemic world?

Artists are always the first to go into a recession and the last to come out. I believe we must just keep working and painting about things that cannot be expressed in words. And when the world gets rid of this virus, people will celebrate with us again.

This is one in a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Herman Mhire lives in Lafayette, LA and has been a customer for over 25 years.

Mhire was named Distinguished Professor in the College of the Arts at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He also served as Director/Chief Curator of the University Art Museum, where he envisioned and established the Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum. Additionally, he is the founding president of Festival International de Louisiane. Trained as a painter and printmaker, his work has been widely exhibited and critically acclaimed.  Through his many roles as a curator, artist, and professor he continues to serve as an ambassador of the Arts for Louisiana locally and internationally.

This is his #artinthetimeofcorona story.

Herman Mhire “Loop de Loop” 2020 archival pigment print, 29” x 22”

How was Lafayette, LA affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally?

Since the COVID-19 virus was first diagnosed, there have been 8,168 cases and 106 deaths in Lafayette Parish, LA. The widespread closure of schools and places of business, coupled with stay-at-home directives, transformed a normally active city into a ghost town. Friends and family remained in contact via social media, email and cellphone, shared lists of favorite films available on Netflix, and posted photos of their latest culinary creations on Facebook.

How have you been affected personally?

Lafayette was blessed with unusually cool and dryer than normal weather this spring, which encouraged residents of all ages to walk, jog and cycle in my neighborhood every morning and evening. Seeing neighbors outdoors, albeit at a safe distance, provided much needed live contact while remaining isolated in my home the rest of the day. Mandatory masking and social distancing have reduced significantly the infection and mortality rates.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

In addition to working in my studio, I have pets and a sizable garden to care for which require attention every day. Limiting activities away from my residence has allowed me to pay greater attention to my studio work and my immediate environment.

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

The rapid spread of COVID-19 coincided with the arrival of Spring. Because I’m an avid gardener, the anticipation of creating a new garden this year was both exciting and therapeutic. In the midst of a global pandemic and an economic downturn, gardening provided a way to engage in a productive activity, plunging my hands into the soil and soaking up rays of sunshine.

With museums and galleries closed are you seeing a shift to the internet for viewing/selling art?  How is this affecting you?

I’ve read that online viewing and selling of works of art has increased. Because I’m not currently an active participant in the commerce of art, I have not been affected by this trend.

Do you see any positive changes for artists in a post pandemic world?

It’s too early to know what the long-term impact of COVID-19 will be on artists. The current health, economic and social justice crises will no doubt provide subject matter for artists to draw upon for years to come.

This is a one of a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Joanne Ungar lives in New York City and is represented by the Front Room Gallery in  New York City. She is a visual artist who makes poured wax artwork.

This is her #artinthetimeofcorona story.

USPSartproject collaboration between Mindy Dubin and Joanne Ungar.

Mindy Dubin, started it as a charcoal drawing (on the right), and I finished it (left).

Charcoal, gouache and colored pencil on paper, 9” x 12”, June 2020

How was New York City affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally?

I’m going to paraphrase from wikipedia: NYC was the worst-affected area in the country in March.  By April, the city had more confirmed coronavirus cases than China, the U.K., or Iran, and by May, had more cases than any country other than the United States. By April, hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers were out of work with lost tax revenues estimated to run to approximately 10 billion dollars.

I have freelanced part time in the video-post-production industry in order to support my art career for over twenty years. This year I’ve been out of work since mid-March, and I don’t expect to work again until July or August at the earliest. That’s a rough year! But I feel lucky to have stayed healthy during this time, and I’m doubly lucky that I have enough savings to get me through the economic drought. I only just started leaving my apartment to travel to my actual art studio for art-making two weeks ago, in early June. For most of March-May I used a temporary home-studio in a corner of my small apartment where I made little paintings and collages. It was a radical change for me in all ways: size of work, 24/7 access, materials, and ideas.

My friend Christina Massey started a pandemic project in April with the two pronged idea of keeping isolated artists connected AND supporting the ailing United States Postal Service (USPS). It’s called @uspsartproject, and basically, 2 artists each create ½ of a work, and then they mail them to each other for completion. I’ve been steadily doing this with multiple artists during my home studio time and now at my art studio. It’s been refreshing and exciting. When it’s all over, I’ll have done 10-15 collaborations, each one producing 2 works of art. It feels great to experiment and try new ideas and new materials all while having a visual dialog with another artist.  The image I’m showing above is one of these collaborations. Mindy Dubin, who is a compatriot video artisan as well as an accomplished fine artist, started it as a charcoal drawing (on the right), and I finished it (left).  There will be a traveling physical show of the @uspsartproject results beginning in August. More information can be found on the Pelham Art Center site.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

I am lucky to have a husband who cooks!  I’ve been baking a little bit. I like to knit — it helps to keep me calm, so I’ve made big progress on my knitting project. But like most artists, I’m accustomed to being alone and being quiet, so lockdown didn’t feel completely horrible to me. I feel bad for my extroverted friends!

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

Now that I’m back at the art studio, the traveling to and from via bicycle is a steady and exhausting routine. (Formerly I took public transportation to get to my studio). I like to grumble about it, but I know it’s actually very beneficial, both for the body and the head.

With museums and galleries closed are you seeing a shift to the internet for viewing/selling art?  How is this affecting you?

Absolutely. I am represented by the Front Room Gallery in NYC. They have temporarily closed their physical gallery but are reopening in July.  While the gallery has been closed, they created and have maintained a robust online program.  They have also held a weekly zoom meeting for their artists which has been great. It keeps us all from feeling lost and alone in the art world. We discuss online shows and ideas that might work as well as what’s happening in the larger world and to each of us individually.  Artists can share tips about social media and share what they’ve got going on outside of the gallery. I’ve been very impressed and inspired. I’m proud to be a member of this gallery.

Do you see any positive changes for artists in a post pandemic world?

I wish I had a crystal ball so I could tell you how the world is going to be changed. For myself, personally, I don’t think much will change. I will continue to make art as best I can, as I always have. My gallerists are valiantly figuring out how to keep up with the changes from their end, and I’m grateful to them for that.

This is one in a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Rob Evans lives in Wrightsville, PA and has been a customer since 2012. He is an artist and independent curator. He has been awarded numerous grants including a prestigious fellowship from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation.

This is his #artinthetimeofcorona story.

Refuge, oil on panel, 1997, 48 x 48 inches

robevansart.org

How was Wrightsville, PA affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally?

Like many small rural towns, Wrightsville has been impacted in a number of ways. While it is not seeing the wave of cases and hospitalizations experienced in the larger cities, it still has a number of documented cases and is a part of the greater lockdown implemented by the state in response to the pandemic. For the first several weeks we were in a complete shelter in place mode, with all non-essential businesses closed. Gradually, the state has eased back restrictions, with businesses slowly opening with social distancing and mask requirements.

The dynamic here in Pennsylvania has been challenging overall. Our terrific Democratic Governor, Tom Wolf, who I have known personally for decades before he had any political aspirations, also happens to govern a state that is very red in the rural regions. So his restrictions and response to this pandemic, although less strict than those recommended by the President’s own experts, have still created quite an outcry from Republican citizens and state lawmakers, creating harsh divisions (even among family and friends) between those arguing for a more careful reopening and those rushing to get back to normal. The already deep political chasm seems to be widening, creating a great deal of tension, mistrust and anger which often boils up on social media. I worry that some of these wounds may never heal.

Personally, the pandemic has had a limited impact. We live on a large self-sufficient farm property with solar panels, a garden, and studio space in a renovated barn on our property. My wife, Renee, and I are both self-employed artists and work from home, so in many ways our lives have remained the same. Our ability to make art has not been diminished, however what has changed dramatically is our ability to sell it, with galleries, museums and other arts venues closed. Even selling online often requires an eventual studio visit to see the work in person or to pick it up, which, during the lockdown, was not feasible.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

Actually, as self-employed artists, our life is relatively free of daily routines. Each day, the projects we work on, whether art related or personal, revolves around specific deadlines, the weather and our personal motivation rather than specific routines. Whether it is working in the studio painting, or on curatorial projects, marketing, social media, framing, gardening, mowing, upkeep and maintenance on our farm property, renovation projects, etc. there is always something to do and they tend to get taken care of in a free form manner. Being able to work in this way, always having something to focus on, has helped keep us grounded through this and other challenging times.

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

Interestingly, one of the activities that has taken center stage in our spare time, has been playing croquet. Our son and his girlfriend, who live in NYC, are staying with us temporarily while things are shut down there. Our daughter and her boyfriend also live close by. Although we rarely ever played in the past, we pulled out an old croquet set from the barn and set it up, and have enjoyed having regular family tournaments here as a way to escape the craziness of our troubled world, get away from our phones and computer screens, and engage with each other in a real rather than virtual way.

With museums and galleries closed, are you viewing art on line? If so, what has inspired you?

A number of museums and galleries have been featuring virtual museum tours and artist studio tours which I have enjoyed viewing. In fact, my studio was featured recently by the Demuth Museum, here in Lancaster, PA, as part of a studio visit series they sponsored during the pandemic. My daughter helped film and edit the tour which also featured one of my recent curatorial projects (you will see many Metropolitan picture frames in the tour!). Here’s a link to the film on YouTube.

How do you market your work? How are you adapting during this time?

Two decades ago, I left all commercial representation behind, including prominent galleries in NYC and Washington, D.C., and began self-representation. I created a gallery space in our renovated barn where I hold regular open studios. I maintain a website with a private portal for collectors to view my available work. I purchased a large format printer which enables me to create archival reproductions of my work, allowing me to sell to a wider market including those who can’t afford an original. To keep my work visible, I exhibit primarily in non-profit art spaces, university galleries and museums.

As a way to insulate myself from the ups and downs of the art market I have tried to form multiple income streams beyond those mentioned above, including book covers for prominent authors, art consulting, paid lectures, jurying exhibits, etc. We also utilize our renovated barn as a B&B and conference room rental (which also brings patrons into the gallery space there) and have solar panels on the roof which generates income. As an independent curator I have organized museum exhibits and published catalogs which also generate revenue. All of this has helped keep us financially afloat through tough times. This pandemic has been a little different, since many of the income streams require personal interaction which is now limited or public spaces which are temporarily closed. While a number of potential exhibits and curatorial projects have had to be put on hold, the self-sufficiency of our property and solar income has helped us get by temporarily until things gradually reopen and get back to some semblance of normalcy.

if you could look into a crystal ball how do you see the art world changing after the pandemic? Are there any positive changes you can foresee?

I do believe the art world will survive all this – however some of the less prepared or financially challenged galleries and art spaces may well struggle to stay open. What I do foresee coming from all this will likely be a greater self-sufficiency among artists. I think many will be forced to discover ways to become less reliant on dealers or galleries during this extended shutdown, and will probably continue to move in that direction. I hope that one positive change that will occur and last is the comradery that has grown within the community of artists – a sense of working together and looking out for each other. This pandemic emphasizes the fragility of our profession, as well as our human frailty, and underscores the importance of art and a tightly knit arts community in these challenging times.

This is one in a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Ying Li lives in New York City and has been a customer for over 15 years. in addition to painting in her studio she is  an art professor at Haverford College.

Li’s work has been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions, including internationally at Centro Incontri Umani Ascona (Switzerland), ISA Gallery (Italy), Enterprise Gallery (Ireland), and Museum of Rochefort-en-Terre (France); in New York City at Lohin Geduld Gallery, Elizabeth Harris Gallery, Tibor de Nagy Gallery, Lori Bookstein Fine Art, The National Academy Museum, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

This is her #artinthetimeofcorona story.

yinglistudio.com

How was New York City affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally?

I am a painter and a professor in Fine Arts at Haverford College, outside Philadelphia. I live and work both in New York City and at Haverford. I have always enjoyed the contrast between the vibration of the big city and the tranquility and beautiful arboretum campus at Haverford. They inspire me in very different ways and keep my senses fresh and alert.

Since the pandemic began I have been staying in our apartment on campus. I have been painting consistently outside on campus and in my studio in the house. I am essentially a landscape painter and I feel very lucky to have the space and nature around me, to be able to live inside of my motifs. My heart is with New York, the most diverse and complex city in the world, the city of artists. I keep in close contact with my friends, most of whom are artists. My thoughts are with them, my mood swings depending on how they are doing.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

My life is grounded in painting. I am a painter, I paint, that is what I do. But there is a difference these days- since I teach full time at the college, I’m always multi-tasking during the academic year. I also travel to paint, do artist residencies, and teach workshops during the summers in normal times. But my scheduled travels and workshops are all cancelled or postponed through this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So, the lockdown has provided me, willingly or not, an uninterrupted period to work on a body of paintings, which intensely reflects my feelings and thoughts on the current time.

I usually play 45 minutes of ping pong with my boyfriend in the morning before starting painting. He is a jazz musician and has his routine of practice. I love hearing him practice, it gives me a sense of continuity and inner peace.

I am working and preparing two exhibitions coming up this year. The first one is at the Pamela Salisbury Gallery in Hudson NY, which will run from June 27 through July 28. The paintings in this show are landscapes I painted in different locales in Europe and in the States, most of them are pre COVID-19. Read more in the Hyperallergic review of the exhibition.

The second show will be at Haverford College in September-October where I will show a series of works entirely done during the Pandemic.

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

I am reading Kay Ryan’s selections of essays, “Synthesizing Gravity”, and rereading Joan Didion’s “The Year of Magical Thinking”. We cook a lot, take turns. Artists usually are good cooks and good eaters. We have been watching “Treme”, a TV series about New Orleanians, including a bunch of jazz musicians, trying to rebuild their lives after Hurricane Katrina. Good characters and devastating stories. It makes me feel so sad after seeing people suffer and, at the same time, uplifted as they persevere during both natural and manmade disasters.

With museums and galleries closed are you seeing a shift to the internet for viewing/selling art?  How is this affecting you?

Internet for viewing/selling art is not new, it has been going on for quite a while. I go with the flow. Fortunately, the galleries where I am showing will exhibit on-line, as well. This gives artists exposure, but at the same time the digital images are not the paintings.

Do you see any positive changes for artists in a post pandemic world?

The only unchanged thing in the world is change. There will always be something changing, if not the pandemic it will be something else. Change is always complicated. I try to be grounded, to know where my core is, to see the permanency in the change. (I think painters are good at that). At the same time, I keep my eyes open, and try to look at the world with new appreciation and intensity.

This is one in a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Lisa McShane lives in  Bow, Washington. She has been a customer since 2013.

She says, “I paint landscapes to capture light and to convey a powerful record of the world I see.

These lands are at my core. In northwest Washington I capture the crystal clear light, early dawn, cold northern lakes, fog and long, dark shadows of winter. In eastern Washington I convey the stark beauty of this exposed, eroded land using a saturated, luminous light so that I can chase and give form to my memories.”

This is her #artinthetimeofcorona story.

lisamcshane.com

How was Bow, Washington affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally?

I’m in Washington State, my county has had a high rate of infection, and our Stay Home/Stay Safe order was announced mid-March. One of the super spreader events was here in Skagit County and took place just three days after my art show opened on March 7^th. We dodged a bullet.

The gallery closed ten days after my solo show opened and my paintings are still hanging there. I had another solo show scheduled for June which was cancelled, and the Seattle Art Fair is cancelled. The cancellations are painful, but I am focused on my drawings right now and planning out a larger project for next year.

I am fortunate, I don’t know anyone who has died. But my children live in Germany and Chicago and I don’t know when I’ll see them next. We live near the Canadian border and every time I see the sign saying “the US/Canadian border is closed to nonessential travel” – it really hits me that I cannot see the people I love.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

I’ve been drawing, a lot. When I’m stressed I draw and by early April the work was starting to pile up. So I started sending drawings off as gifts to the world: art collectors, friends, family, people I wanted to thank for their leadership or kindness, people who needed to be cheered up, friends of friends, strangers who asked. I sent out 16 drawings on April 8^th and then kept going. You can see some of this on my Instagram feed, @lmcshaneart. I sent out Pandemic Drawing #161 today.

I mail a small drawing, a poem, and a personal note. A few weeks ago I ran out of drawing paper and a nearby printmaker resupplied me with gorgeous imperfect papers and cut ends. Sending these packets off allows me to focus deeply on others, on what I believe they’d like, what poem and stamp reminds me of them, and it takes me outside of myself. The responses I get from people – whether on social media or letters back in the mail – have been delightful. Governor and Trudi Inslee were in the first wave of drawings I sent off and he sent back a 3-page letter with drawings of a walk they took around the capitol! That cheered me up.

The first thing I do every day is draw; I play records and I draw. The packets go into the mailbox, and then I settle in to work. I don’t know when I’ll stop this project, it feels so right for this moment.

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

We have 15 acres of forest on an island off the coast of Washington and I’ve been running on forest trails and sometimes to the beach. These are the beaches you can see in many of my paintings. I’ve also spent time listening to books while pulling invasive ivy out of our forest. These two things help keep me healthy, sane, and grounded.

With museums and galleries closed are you seeing a shift to the internet for viewing/selling art?  How is this affecting you?

I had a trip planned to in early April to visit my daughter in Chicago and with that cancelled, we went online together and did virtual visits of the Hermitage, the Getty, the Kunsthistorisches Museum. I was in Washington, she was in Illinois so we dressed up, opened identical bottles of Washington wine and discussed paintings. It was kind of wonderful.

The gallery that represents me, Smith and Vallee in Edison, Washington, has a robust online ordering system and I think they are seeing some sales. People are also finding their way to the gallery to purchase in person. Since starting my Pandemic Drawing Project three of the people who received a drawing bought a painting in the gallery.

Do you see any positive changes for artists in a post pandemic world?

Yes, so many.

We aren’t going back to the pre-pandemic world and I believe people are understanding the value of art in our lives. I was reading the New York Times on Sunday and noticed ads for expensive handbags and wondered, in what universe does this matter anymore? Consumption suddenly feels dated and the things that matter are having people to love, good food, a forest trail to walk in, poetry, music, and art. I’m planning to buy a painting at an upcoming art exhibit and I feel certain I’m not the only one who wants more art. Everyone who needs a better Zoom background should buy art!

This is one in a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Ben Huff lives in Juneau, AK and has been a customer since 2018. He is a photographer and the founder of the independent publisher, Ice Fog Press.

This is his #artinthetimeofcorona story.

huffphoto.com

How was Juneau affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally?

Here in Juneau, it feels like we’ve dodged a bullet to some degree. We’ve only had 26 total cases, and had a twenty six day stretch with no recorded cases, until two were reported last week. Juneau, and the state, have been diligent at adhering to social distancing and mask wearing, and it appears to have worked. But, as I type this the governor has lifted all restrictions today – going from phase 2 of our statewide plan straight to phase 4 – with all businesses opening without restrictions. I hope we don’t soon lose our standing as the state with the least cases in the country.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

Since the start, I’ve been in the studio most days. I live very close, and the building is empty, bar two tenants, so once I navigate the front door of the building, I’m clear. Most days in the studio at the beginning revolved around tending to some needed archive work, printing, working on a book mockup of a current project, and making and shipping books for my indie publishing imprint Ice Fog Press. Recently, I’ve been getting out to make pictures for myself, and some local clients and magazines.

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

My wife and I have always cooked a fair amount, and that has now become more necessary. I’ve recently moved vegetable starts from the kitchen into the garden, and tending to house projects that went neglected all winter. But, mostly, to cope, I’ve been skiing, running, and packrafting close to home. One of the great draws to living in a small town in Alaska is that I can be on my skis, with my dog, in twenty minutes – headed for a ridge and a view, without coming in contact with anyone else. It’s absolutely essential to me during normal times, and this current madness has me even more thankful to exist in this place.

With museums and galleries closed are you seeing a shift to the internet for viewing/selling art?  How is this affecting you?

I was preparing for an exhibition at the Anchorage Museum when the pandemic took hold. We’ve rescheduled for next spring, and to be honest I’m happy to just still be on the calendar. I’ll be showing the same project, Atomic Island, at the Alaska State Museum in the fall of this year, assuming that things keep on a downward trend. Initially, the lost momentum of the rescheduling of both exhibitions was really dispiriting. It’s important to me to have shows in physical spaces, but my priorities have been upended in a very short period of time. It seems everything I care about is in jeopardy, and it’s difficult to prioritize in the ways I’m accustomed to.
As for sales – I don’t currently have representation, so print sales generally come from recommendations from curators and other artists. It’s a tough time. I don’t know anyone who has a solid feel for how things are going to play out. I certainly don’t.

Do you see any positive changes for photographers in a post pandemic world?

In simplest terms, artists make art. Some of my friends are working, some can’t find it right now, but they will. We’re all processing this in different ways, but art will be made. I don’t subscribe to the idea that all great art comes from tragedy, but the artists that come out of this on the other side will have stories to tell. It’s our shared history now.

This is one in a series of interviews with our customers to see how they are adapting to the COVID-19 world.

Kes Woodward  lives in Fairbanks, Alaska and has been a customer for over 25 years. Woodward’s paintings are included in all major public art collections in Alaska, and in museum, corporate and private collections on both coasts of the United States.

Also an art historian and curator, Woodward since 1990 has published six books on Alaskan art.

This is his #artinthetimeofcorona story.

keslerwoodward.com

How was Fairbanks affected by the COVID-19 virus? How have you been affected personally?

We were shut down abruptly and completely, here in Fairbanks and throughout Alaska, just as the rest of the world, in March. I found it, and still find it, most shocking how completely the entire world could be so completely shut down in a matter of days. Who knew the veneer of modern civilization was so thin?

Fairbanks was the epicenter of infection in Alaska during the first few weeks, largely because we are home to the main campus of the University of Alaska, and so many Fairbanksians travel over Spring Break, which coincided perfectly with the outbreak of the virus in the U.S. But our community, and Alaska as a whole, accepted lockdown and shelter-at-home willingly and seriously, and new cases of infection rapidly came to nearly a complete halt. Testing was fairly robust and smartly targeted, compliance with social distancing was surprisingly (given the fractious, independent nature of Alaskans) complete, and our state leaders have consistently followed the advice of our terrific Alaska Chief Medical Officer and the Alaska medical community as a whole, so we have been very fortunate.

My wife Dorli and I have been grateful that we were able to do our work in isolation. Dorli has taught her private and University flute students continuously by Skype, FaceTime, Google Hangouts, and Zoom, very effectively, and I have gone to my studio and worked. I attend the many not-for-profit board meetings that I usually attend in person, often following air travel, by Zoom from home. We feel extraordinarily fortunate.

Do you have a daily routine that keeps you grounded these days? 

As always, I go to my studio in the morning and go to work. I did find it harder than usual to concentrate, for the first month or more especially, and my pace slowed, but being able to do my work at even a reduced pace helped keep me calmer and sane, even as I spent much of each day checking the internet for news and information.

Thanks to technology, I have been able to read to the kindergarten class that I’ve read to every Wednesday morning I’ve been in town for 29 years, via Zoom. And best of all, I’ve been doing art lessons and activities every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning via FaceTime with my 8 year-old granddaughter in Snohomish, Washington. 

Are you reading, cooking, streaming, or doing any activity that is helping you cope?

Painting is always the best coping mechanism for me. As long as I can do my work, I am o.k. But Dorli and I have done more streaming of movies and television series in the evenings, and we’ve both done even more reading than usual.

With museums and galleries closed are you seeing a shift to the internet for viewing/selling art?  How is this affecting you?

I have been viewing more art virtually since I’ve been unable to travel and visit museums and galleries physically, and have discovered new things, appreciating the efforts museums in Alaska and elsewhere have made to open their collections and exhibits to the virtual world.

I have for some years now sold even more of my work through my website than through the excellent galleries that represent me from Fairbanks and Anchorage to Montreal. All of those physical galleries have been closed since the pandemic began, so all my sales for the last few months have been through my website. I feel extraordinarily fortunate, and very reassured, by the fact that collectors of my work have continued to acquire paintings throughout this period—from Alaska to England. Despite that reassurance, I am very glad that the galleries are beginning to re-open, with careful social distancing guidelines and appropriate measures, as they are over the long haul not only my dear friends, but an essential part of building the base of collectors of my work that has made the continuing following and acquisition of my work during this strange time possible.

Do you see any positive changes for artists in a post pandemic world?

I think we’ve all been humbled by this experience—made more aware of the ways in which we are dependent upon one another and that many of us are fortunate, even as so many are not. I would like to think we will learn to cherish our mutual interdependence when this eases, and take so many things less for granted.