Queensland's craft and design community are joining together to stay creative and connected in the midst of COVID-19 shutdowns.
In less than a week, over 750 talented makers of craft and design across Queensland, and beyond, have joined a new Facebook group, artisan at home, to link up online and share what they are working on in their homes and studios.
The brainchild of artisan, the peak body for craft and design in Queensland, the artisan at home Facebook group is growing at speed by extending a much-needed lifeline to makers and their supporters.
Old work, unseen work, and works in progress are all being shared, as well as some immediate and imaginative reflections on coronavirus and life in self-isolation.
Pamela See, a well-known Brisbane artist who practises the traditional Chinese art of papercutting, joined the group to keep connected and share.
"We don't know how long this new isolation will last and artisan at home is bringing us together. There's a wave of positivity and resourcefulness coming to the surface on the page, so you go away happy and inspired," Pamela said.
Mostly made up of Queensland makers, the group is extending further afield into other States and Territories and also abroad.
Claire-Louise Smith, a Darwin-based photographic artist, is enjoying connecting and sharing inspiration with fellow creatives in the group without distance as a barrier.
"It's my new favourite page. I love being inspired by all the different makers and artists across the country. I feel like creative people are taking this opportunity to do what they do best, be inspired by an event and turn it into something beautiful. To take focus away from fear and anxiety, and bring it back to the constructive and creative," Claire-Louise explained.
The immediate participation and positive response to artisan at home has also encouraged the artisan team to maintain and extend the community.
Leah Emery, Public Programming Offer at artisan, said makers from across Queensland are embracing the opportunity to make entirely new creative connections and designs in uncertain times.
"We know that life is very different right now, and it could be for some time, so I'm delighted that through artisan we're able to find a silver lining and bring makers together for the benefit of both their personal and professional wellbeing," Leah said.
"I've been engaging with the artisan at home community on a personal level too. It's more important than ever to maintain a sense of community and connection, and the artisan network has evolved into such a wonderfully supportive resource over the past 50 years. It's benefitting us all to have a safe and accessible platform in which we can share and celebrate each other's creative contributions."
