COVID-19 has impacted the arts community in a many different ways. Theatres, galleries and venues have been forced to close. Social distancing means that for some artists it may be hard to connect with their audiences. For those who depend on the arts for their living, the current situation is potentially economically devastating.
Yet the creative spark often isn’t dimmed in isolation. We reached out to a number of local artists and those from arts-related sector to see what they are doing to help weather the current “stay home” environment.
“I’ve been working for several years on a collection of personal essays—brief, reflective memoir pieces spanning from my childhood to the present. I’m working now on finalizing them, filling in some blanks, and preparing them for publication.” – Paula Dunning, author
“Weird times. I’ve stopped all sessions and rentals, and even stopped all future bookings because there’s no way to know how long this will last. So far I’m using the time to catch up on some editing and mixing, but I’m almost there already. So the remainder of the time, I’ll probably be taking online courses to continue improving my mixing chops, and may even spend some time working on my own music again. Otherwise, will be watching too much CNN with my fiancé, my pupper and my cats." – Dustin Goodall, musician/producer
“We started with the idea of live stream on Facebook last Thursday a bit late in the evening and Cricket the cat (as luck would have it) completely upstaged me. Over the course of six nights it’s kind of grown into a bit of a fun thing with a cult following of sorts. It seems the hits range from 500 to 750 or so meaning people like it. The advantage is to be able to have some banter with Raven and to keep things moving. People seem to like that aspect. Raven closed tonight’s episode with a great line: “Just because we are in isolation doesn’t mean we have to be isolated.” We go live every night at 8 p.m. for about 15 or 20 minutes. On Sunday, we start at 7:30 p.m. No virtual tip jar on my show. I suggest people donate to food banks or people in need if they are inclined.” - Al Wood, musician and Sault ex-pat
“Right now, maintaining sanity is a priority. I’m trying to limit how much time I spend on social media, other than talking with friends and family. I’ve been reading more, obviously, but with this downtime I’ve been able to get back into painting. I’ve also started keeping a journal. This is history, man. It’s our collective story, though we don’t necessarily live through it the same. Also, Skyrim, for the fourth time. So nerdy.” – Melodie Taylor, unapologetic book nerd, lover of the printed word and unabashed bibliophile, as well as a Rad Zone personality
“My studio has stopped recording clients and will review mid-April. As for myself, I wrote my first tune on piano and another is just about finished. Doug Wilde recently did key tracks on one of my tunes via file transfer. Also via file transfer, James Anthony is doing a guitar track. My personal music is moving along nicely.” – Warren Reville, musician/producer
“Today was my first day out in weeks. I broke some ribs so I can’t really do anything. And my wife's a nurse at the hospital so I'm staying away from people.” – Dan Grisdale, photographer
“Right now I'm recording some teaching videos for Case's Music, re-growing my beard from scratch, and spending lots of time with my baby girl. This is a great time to get into a new instrument or skill. Practice lots and share what you have with the world.” – Jake Rendall, musician and co-owner of Case’s Music
“I have been painting and renovating the interior of a little house I bought in the in the Sault, although I still live an hour north of town on Lake Superior primarily. Out there, I've been practicing my original songs and jazz standards on my grand piano. I'm still painting pictures, mostly to hang at the Conservatory of Music. [The outdoor] guiding season dried up due to the virus. I wonder if the campers will be coming north this summer. I walk and do yoga every day. I enjoy cooking and posting pictures of my adventures on Facebook. Soon, foraging season will begin. Life is good.” – Ellen Van Laar, artist, musician and outdoor adventurer. (Ellen also shared a pro tip: “The only reason I have time for all this is that I don't have or watch TV. I read."
“I have a home studio and I am currently weathering the coronavirus storm by organizing a collaborative recording project. I am working with musicians in Canada, Brazil, and the United Kingdom who also have studios. I send out a song and the others add their parts. Then they send them back to me. The result is a band that could not exist in the physical world due to the barriers of geography. It is a great opportunity to be creative, and also to get to work with people whom I have admired for a long time.” - Craig West, musician/producer
“During this time of quiet it is an opportuinity to create with our production committee our 2021 and 2022 season as well as looking at opportunities for charity productions and workshops. We are excited to get together and celebrate the ARTs together again.” - Algoma Repertory Theatre
Finally, Sootoday’s beloved film critic….
“I'm still working from home putting in my 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week. The one thing that has changed is that I'm alone in my home office so I can play what [music] I want with very few interruptions. The last week I've taken to deep dives into artists' catalogs. One day will be the entire Beatles discography, the next day will be dedicated to The Killers, another day was all Otis Redding, all day long. Stuff like that. Today might be an electronic day. I had a hankering for the late Johann Johannsson, starting with his score for Sicario. Then I’ll see where I go from there. Another thing keeping me from bouncing off of the walls are podcasts. I found one called Newcomers, two comedians that have never watched anything Star Wars watch Star Wars. It is funny and surprising. Disgraceland is up on the mountaintop for me. I love that show. The 27 Club is greatness. Rivals is another great show - it's about the great rivalries in music. Think Stevie Nicks vs Lindsay Buckingham or Elton John vs Billy Joel. I’m re-watching Better Call Saul, Supernatural, and Battlestar. Oh, and I watched Yesterday and found it very charming and it made me smile. I keep meaning to watch more new-to-me stuff but right now I think the familiar is acting like my security blanket. It's helping keep away the panic attacks.” - Robert Slack, lover of music, film and Aisle Seat columnist.