This past year has been hard for everyone, some more than others. I have positives and negatives I have personally experienced during this ‘quarantine’ and all of its regulations. In March of ’20, when it all started, I panicked for about a day. Panicking did nothing, and it wasn’t good for me. Truth was, I could die now, or I could die 40 years from now. One thing was for sure: I had to get it together and do something.
So I wrote a novel. Then, I wrote another novel. Then, I tried to use our yard as a gym. Not super effective, but the gym was closed and everyone had scarfed up the weights from Walmart, so cross-yard was my only option. Like everyone else, I watched a LOT of movies. We were ordering grocery delivery, wearing our masks, distancing our socials. Everything was ok. But I was doing everything but art.
I tried to produce, but that’s what I was doing: producing. I couldn’t work up the joy to paint something truly from the heart.
And then another wave of panic hit: is this how we will live forever? I had been through art ‘dips’ before, so I knew I wasn’t done as an artist. But would I live locked away in a room? I don’t have Rapunzel hair, and contrary to the artist stereotype of being holed up in an art cave, I do like going out and seeing the sunshine and other people.
Before the thought of solitary studio confinement got its claws too far in, I started writing again. And I made some art. I still didn’t like the art, so I decided to step away for a bit until I had something I wanted to paint. It was a little scary, because it made me wonder why I created, how I could glorify God doing so, and what I was ‘supposed’ to paint.
That season turned out to be one of immense change, where, among other things, I moved out of state. Talk about having a full plate! The change of place was something else to get used to, but things fell together. In my new house, I drew and painted and a new kind of pencil-acrylic-collage work started surfacing. As had happened a few times in my artistic life, something new was being born!
I also worked with a friend on a comic book about famous black Philadelphians from history who did great things. The book is due out mid-summer of 2021.
Even with all of the creating, there’s only so much writing, painting and ‘escaping’ you can do. As I read about people in deep depression and even taking their lives, I realized I needed to—and still need to—rely on a power that will never let me down: Jesus. When I turned my thoughts to Him knowing this was going on, and knowing He is still in control, I calmed down. And I’m still making art.
I don’t just rely on Him during a pandemic, but every day. Prayer is my go-to for peace. Restrictions are lightening up somewhat, but another coping mechanism I’ve found that works, after prayer, is looking at things day-to-day. It also helps me get art done. I used to try to take huge blocks of time and paint. Now, I do something—anything—to get a piece done, every day. It’s amazing how much you can do when you do it a bite at a time!
