Monica Cliff 6/29/20 Monica Cliff 6/29/20

5 Ways Artists Can Channel their Creativity During Difficult Times

It's no secret that the year 2020 has proven to be a challenging year for many of us. Most areas and industries have been affected in some way during this year.

Let's Look Back

The year started with a potential threat of World War III, followed by the US presidential impeachment. During February, the world suddenly stopped due to the COVID-19 ongoing pandemic, which led to unprecedented unemployment and the economic recession. Lastly, on May 25th, we witnessed the unfortunate death of George Floyd by the Minneapolis police officers, which sparked protests around the world.

Too many things are happening so quickly and intensely that it is hard to digest so much information. I personally have struggled to keep my mental health in check this year.

As a way to deal with my anxiety productively, I decided to search for ways to use my time and skills to help my community during these difficult times and channel my creativity.

Here are 5 ideas that artists can use to channel their creativity and help their communities.

1. Create Digital Posts for social media that inspire change and action in others.

Challenging times can bring the best or the worst in us, as human beings. Staying hopeful during difficult times is not easy. Still, as artists, we can see the beauty in the ugly, more often than not.

when you wanted what you currently have.png

2. Making Face Masks

If you know how to sew, you can be of great help to your community by creating cloth face masks. There are many local groups all over the country, supplying materials and in search of volunteers. Check out my previous post about the importance of face masks that includes instructions and links to existing patterns.

3. Create Political Signs and Props for Protests.

Inspire people and invite others to action by conveying a message of change. Many artists have had an opportunity to create some eye-catching signs and props to express our disapproval of systemic racism and police brutality.

4. Create Memes that will diffuse some tensions in social media.

Sometimes to bring down the stress, we just need a good cathartic laugh. Creating some ironic, yet funny memes can help you and others release some of the stress. I know it is hard to laugh at some of the situations we are living, but I like to think that we are becoming more resilient.

5. Become an inspiration for your community, and restore hope.

You know what they say, after the storm there's calm, and often a rainbow! I was sad when I learned about the looting on State Street after the first Black Lives Matter protest in Madison, WI. Still, when I saw how quickly a lot of the members in our community organized themselves to clean up the mess, it lifted my spirit. Many fellow artists had the idea to beautify the new stores' wooden façades by painting colorful murals and hopeful quotes. It just made me smile and renewed my faith in humanity.

We can all do something to help each other during these difficult times. I know there are more ideas out there.

Are you an artist that has contributed in a positive way to your community?

Do you have any examples or links that you would like to share with our community about different ways artists have made life better for others? Please share your experience and leave a comment.

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Monica Cliff 6/26/20 Monica Cliff 6/26/20

How Artists are Creating for a Cause Sewing Face Masks

When the Stay-At-Home order began in Wisconsin due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Health Care industry announced a PPE shortage to deal with the pandemic, and all the disposable face masks were sold out for a while everywhere.

Community in Action

The past two months have affected a lot of people due to the loss of income and jobs. I was one of them, while I did not lose my job, my hours were reduced to 50% along with my salary. Many people had extra time and the need to stay busy and find a new purpose for fighting anxiety. Local sewing circles started to form, and members of the community volunteered their skills and materials to provide face masks for hospitals, organizations, and neighborhoods.

Why Homemade Face Masks

The CDC recommends using cloth face masks or coverings because it can help slow the spread of COVID-19 when used in public places. While homemade face masks are not as effective as the N95 filtration mask, they are considered an emergency backup in times of crisis.

Another reason to use a reusable cloth face mask is to reduce the amount of waste created by the disposable face masks.

Creating for a Cause

I found the group Creating for A Cause through Facebook; it is a local organization that gathered a group of artists and volunteers to help with this project. We have made together over 2,000 masks! Our group has donated to these organizations:

• One City Neighborhood

• Jewish Social Services

• Marc Inc

• First Nation Reservation in Utah

• Salvation Army

• Middleton Senior Center

• MOM Food Pantry

My contribution has been over 500 donated face masks! I shipped 200 face masks to my hometown in Mexico.

You can help to make face masks, too; this is a great activity that can help you channel your creativity while helping your community. And your whole family can participate in this project!

How to Start:

Search for a local Facebook Face Mask sewing group, and some will provide you fabric, elastic, or other materials. Each group has its own pre-approved face mask pattern that you can use. If you are in Wisconsin, you can join the Wisconsin Face Mask Warriors.

There are many free patterns available online, as well as video tutorials.

The patterns I used with my group were a basic face mask with elastic, and a fitted face mask with elastic. You can also modify the elastic and add ties, some organizations that work with kids prefer face masks with ties because you can adjust it better.

A Classic Face Mask Pattern

This pattern is the one I used the most because it was really easy and quick to make.

Materials:

- Sewing machine

- 100% Cotton Fabric, two different colors

- Thread

- Elastic

- Fabric Cutter and Scissors

- Measuring tape

Instructions:

1. Wash and press your fabric before cutting it.

2. You need two different fabrics to make one face mask; if the face mask is double-sided, it can help the user remember which side they had facing their mouth.

3. Cut two pieces of elastic of 6.5” each per face mask. This is a great job for kids to do!

4. Once you have all the pieces, pin the front and back pieces in-side-out, making sure the pieces of elastic are also pinned in each corner.

5. Sew a ¼” seam allowance around the rectangle, leaving about a 2” opening to turn the face mask right-side-out.

6. Make the three pleas on both sides of the mask and sew along the edge.

TIPS: If you are planning to make a lot of face masks, be sure to have extra sewing machine needles, I broke three! Also, clean up the bobbin area frequently since a lot of lint and debris can build around the feed dog area and jam the mechanism.

You can get as creative as you want when designing your face masks, check out some examples of fun designs other artists have created. For example, this is my good friend and fellow artist, Gabriel Ancira’s beautiful design, he is a very talented costume designer and a very skilled jewelry maker.

Have you done a DIY face mask? Please share the link of your favorite pattern or design in the comments!

If you are interested in collaborating sewing face masks to donate, please leave a comment so we can connect.

Monica Cliff 6/24/20 Monica Cliff 6/24/20

The Importance of Art During the COVID-19 Disruption

On New Year’s Eve I was in Mexico, visiting my family, my kids and I went there to spend the holiday season. I remember working on the storyboard for the 2020 Wisconsin Film Festival trailer. I was excited and enjoying every moment of the creative process. I was thrilled to be part of this project!

“The Lonely Badger”, a Wisconsin Film Festival production, designed by Monica Cliff.

After we returned to the US, I worked on the shadow puppets for the film, I smiled, imagining the audience's happy faces when they saw the trailer and the silly characters. I like to imagine the audience’s reaction when I work on creative projects. I also thought that this was an excellent opportunity for my friends and me to enjoy the Film Festival and have a party after.

Little did I know while I worked on this project back in January that I would not see the film on the big screen.

We wrapped up shooting at the end of January. By mid-February, we were facing an unprecedented health crisis, a worldwide pandemic, most of us did not know what to expect. Most organizations did not have a plan right away. Most of them waited to see if the COVID-19 pandemic was severe enough that a mandatory quarantine was needed. I remember getting an immense amount of emails, from every store I have ever given my email to, regarding the measures they were taking with dealing with the pandemic, and I thought “Wow! This got to be serious!”. I also remember the silence as we all waited to learn more about this virus from the experts. By the end of February, I still didn’t know if the festival would take place as usual, and I was worried.

Wisconsin’s ‘Stay-At-Home’ order

On March 25, 2020, Governor Evers issued a ‘Stay-At-Home’ order in the state of Wisconsin. By then, the University of Wisconsin decided that the 2020 Wisconsin Film Festival needed to be canceled, however the films would be streamed on YouTube. I was very disappointed and so the rest of the team who worked very hard for months on this project.

As an artist, it was sad seeing other events being canceled due to the pandemic. So much time, effort, and resources were lost, but it was understandable that it was for everyone's best interest. During this time many jobs and skills were redefined as essential and many job positions were eliminated. Several industries were hurt financially, and other types of industries became essential. Myself and other fellow artists across the globe started to question if making art was still relevant, many conversations took place in Facebook groups about our concerns.

A "New Normal"

It took a few weeks for many organizations to understand what was going on and how to best address our current situation. Many people turned to social media, and digital communications became critical to work and to keep each other connected. I do not imagine living in a pandemic without the internet.

After much reflection, I am convinced that most people kept their sanity during these difficult times thanks to the internet and the arts. Content like movies, TV series, music, pictures, books, memes, etc. were available online and helped our community with emotional processing.

Many art organizations made their content available for free online. Many artists started working on new art pieces that reflected the times we were living. Other artists were struggling in different ways, mainly financially.

People who did not consider themselves artists turned to art with the hope of managing their stress levels. It was inspiring to see them sharing their projects on social media.

Little Angel Theatre thrived during this time and was featured on the news for its creative ways to keep inspiring people to make art using items found at home. This type of news always brings a smile to my face.

And I shared the Wisconsin Film Festival trailer on social media with friends and family.

2020 Wisconsin Film Festival Trailer. Production Design by Monica Cliff.

Art is not a luxury; art is a necessary form of expression and the key element that reminds us of our own humanity and always inspire us to be better. As artists what we do matters.

Are you an artist that was impacted by COVID-19?

How did you enjoy art during the quarantine?

If you have any examples of amazing, inspiring artists or art, please share it with us by leaving a comment!