Eastside Culture Crawl artists give back: why collecting local art is important, especially now
Many Crawl artists have pivoted their work and begun to create masks during the pandemic
“Making PPE for front line workers kept me focused and positive during times of uncertainty as I was able to give back to my community,” says Eastside Culture Crawl artist Liz Heider, who made this mask.
COVID-19 has altered lives in unfathomable ways, with visual artists from Vancouver’s Eastside being inordinately impacted. Artists who are already at-risk of losing their art production spaces and who are struggling to survive in a city studio space is hard to come by or afford faced an even greater challenge: connecting with audiences to share their artwork.
Thankfully, Eastside Culture Crawl has re-imagined its beloved festival and is set to deliver the 24th annual fest both virtually and in-person by appointment November 12 to 15 and November 19 to 22. This festival offers artists and audiences a rare opportunity to connect and share the vast wealth of artwork Eastside artists have been busy creating during such turbulent times.
Throughout the last several months, there has been an extraordinary outflow of creativity. And what the pandemic has proven is that art remains a critical and celebrated catharsis.
“One of the most beautiful things about the work shared through COVID times is the depth of response,” says artist Victoria Mitchell of Eastside Atelier. “The introspective quality of interactions around art has been profound...I am so grateful for these engagements which connect us creatively and emotionally.”
The biggest way audiences can support Eastside artists is by collecting their art. In true form, many Crawl artists have been truly innovative in pivoting their work and have begun to create masks during the pandemic. Below is a look at some of the Crawl artists who are giving back through their creativity.
Liza Heider (pictured at top)
“Making PPE for front line workers kept me focused and positive during times of uncertainty as I was able to give back to my community. I was just moving into my new studio as COVID was starting to shut down businesses. I was then called to volunteer my sewing skills to make scrub hats. The sewing work enabled me to rethink my business and direction as an artist and maker. This is when I decided to make non-medical face masks that are not only stylish, but comfortable and CDC compliant. My PPE work also formed new friendships with nurses, doctors and other makers and sewers in my community. “
Lola + Olive Designs: (above)
Many of our patterns are on our Instagram @lolaandolive and we welcome people to get in touch (lolaandolivedesigns@gmail.com) and safely visit our studio 102 - 1000 Parker St. by appointment, to see the full range of interesting, colourful masks we have. We have donated over 350 masks to the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre and Sheway and donated our labour of 725 masks to TAAAC for Ethiopia.
“We were excited to discover that our design and craft were so adaptable that we could repurpose our work with textiles to fabricate masks to help the community while still satisfying our artistic appetite.”
Karen Lorena Parker (above)
Benefitting BC Cancer $5 from every sale, Parker initiated a campaign to showcase the art masks on Cancer patients. The conversation of community and how we can contribute to a compassionate story. In addition, Parker will enter the first 200 purchases in a draw to win an original 30 x 30” painting.
Arleigh Wood: (above)
Masks made in Canada with her artwork. Available to purchase online through her webshop.
In addition to creating art, and in some cases innovating new forms of work such as masks, Crawl artists have also been eager to give back to the community by donating to local organizations this year. Of artists surveyed, 91% donated over $35,000 in artwork to charities they support this year, including: The Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre, BC Cancer Society, Loving Spoonful, Arts Umbrella, BC Women’s Hospital, Vancouver Aquarium and, of course, the Eastside Culture Crawl.