Collaborators: Cicada, Seedling Creative
Work for professional artists came to an abrupt halt at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Art galleries were closed, music venues were closed, and the future was uncertain. My team and I put together the Art at a Distance grant program as an effort to keep novel art experiences going in our city.
We recieved about 150 submissions and chose 10 recipients for the grant. We then paired them up randomly, and commissioned a collaborative piece from each pair. The catch was that, in the spirit of safety in the early coronavirus days, they were never allowed to meet in person. Instead we worked with Seedling Creative to organize and record zoom meetings between each pair of artists, documenting their process.
At the end of the grant project we held a “digital gallery opening” for their work, where we showed off each piece, along with a mini-documentary about the process to create it. Here is the final minidoc about the whole process, including a sample from each finished piece.
Artists
Artist/Educator Chanel Thervil + Animator Kate Costello
Percussionist Cornnell Coley + Biomemetic Designer Kate Reed
Guqin Musician Lia Xu + Public Spaces Artist Phillip Knodle
Puppeteer Sarah Nolan + Illustrator Juantopia
Mural Artist Merkaveli + Bespoke Boot Maker Sabateuse
