I’ve started this post several times, only to scratch it out again.
I kept trying to say something relevant about COVID-19, but the longer it goes on, the harder it gets to say anything worthwhile about it, or indeed anything that hasn’t been said many times before by others more eloquent than me.
So, I’ve been busy in my studio over the past 7 weeks. Confinement has bought so many unexpected surprises both bad and good – and this is a story about something I had not ever expected to do, yet it turned out to be a worthwhile and enjoyable experience. So much so, I’m developing it further and deeper.
On 17th March President Macron announced our lockdown and by the end of the day I had dreamed up and implemented a little thing. To control what I can control, and as is usually the case, that means making art. I truly believe creativity can help us through life’s challenges. It gets energy moving, then generates more ideas and thus supports our mental & physical wellbeing.
In a nutshell, when the shit hits the fan I generally take action, and so I threw together a project for my sake, and to share around with my friends, newsletter subscribers and people who might be interested on Instagram. I always need a sense of purpose to keep me going, coupled with a genuine desire to be helpful.
In about 15 minutes I made a video showing how to make a simple concertina book. I brainstormed some ideas how to fill it – relaxed, flexible, easy, distracting and could be done from home with whatever supplies were to hand. I made a quick worksheet, a shared Pinterest board and a playlist. I imaginatively called it Concertina Retreat (I liked the idea of a virtual art retreat rather than a workshop or class) and just sent it out into the world with the lowest of expectations. To be completely honest, I expected/hoped that maybe about 5 of us would do it.
Strangely, it turned out far bigger and better, well received and participated in than I could have imagined. Obviously many people felt a need to take action too. It was so lovely, to see so much enthusiasm and a willingness to share and support one another.
I kind of made it up as I went along, creating the content one day to go out the following morning in an email. Guided by a theme prompt to generate ideas and some suggestions for how to fill the pages if needed, it began to grow and grow. I was researching and finding things for the Pinterest board, answering lots of emails and messages, keeping active on Instagram as well as creating my own book. It completely took over my life. As the week went on more and more people wanted to join in, so I ended up running a second round once the first one was finished.
As I said in the opening email: “Art is one of history’s great documenters, and this is an unprecedented time we are living through right now. However, I didn’t want it to mean necessarily making work ABOUT the situation or any emotions around it, but if that’s what you feel drawn to, that’s ok too. But at the end whatever you’ve created will always be marked indelibly by the circumstance in which it was created, and that’s powerful stuff.”
{You can see work created by some of the participants who were using Instagram here}
Below is the book I created myself during the retreat:
I didn’t know at the beginning how much I would enjoy creating this little online retreat, and had no idea it would be popular. I even felt bold enough to ask for donations to my tip jar, or to ask if anyone would like to buy me a coffee. People were incredibly generous, which really made me feel that I was providing something of value. It sowed a tiny seed in my mind, which I’ve been allowing to take root and put out little shoots. I’ve nurtured and grown some ideas on how to offer a better, deeper, improved version of an online retreat. So now I’m in the creative cave, improving the book format, my filming techniques and worksheets and learning about platforms which can deliver the retreat much more effectively than a daily email.
If you think it’s something you might be interested in, sign up for my newsletter at the link below.
