Covid-19 & The Art Community

There’s no doubt that art is a very valued part of Lincoln High School as well as San Jose in general. On campus, we have several buildings decorated with student-made art, and then there’s our very popular performing arts program as well. Off-campus, we have everything from elaborate murals to community painted electrical boxes, and while all of that hasn’t been affected, the artists have. 

When the pandemic struck it cost so many artists their space, work, and opportunities. Both studios and galleries closed, cutting off resources and revenue. 

It gave a lot of artists the time and motivation to make something and express themselves. This included a lot of people getting back into old hobbies such as ceramics, stained glass, painting, and drawing. 

10th grade Media Arts student, Madi Van Bebber, shared that creating art has definitely been harder during the pandemic, with obstacles like social distancing, lack of equipment, and difficulties in communication getting in the way. However, she still encourages others to indulge in art, explaining, “It’s just a creative outlet where I can get everything out and I think that’s really important especially now that everyone’s [quarantined] indoors.”

Luckily, there are tons of ways in San Jose to get involved in art. 

The City of San Jose has an entire portion of their website dedicated to resources for artists and people interested in art here. One particularly cool section is the “Holding the Moment” gallery that showcases works made by San Jose artists reflecting on life during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

There are also a variety of free resources online that center on art, including the one provided by Google Arts & Culture (that can be found here), which allows users to explore museums and galleries from around the world in their homes. 

If you feel trapped indoors, you can even put on a mask and go enjoy some of the public art in San Jose. Just walking through downtown you can find so much diverse and beautiful artwork decorating the sides of buildings. 

Whether you decide to pick up a pencil and do some sketching or go art admiring around the city, you can benefit from art during these times, so why not give it a try?

  Sophia Barry
Sophia Barry