Surge in Art During the Pandemic

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(Image via Wikimedia, Credit to user Kenrossalex)

Alexa Moore, Writer

At the start of the pandemic, many people didn’t know what to do with all of this free time because we could no longer do what we were used to doing. Most people started looking for hobbies to entertain themselves with because everyone was stuck at home. I’m one of these people, I’ve always loved art but during the pandemic, with all the extra free time I could start doing it more seriously. 

As more people started finding hobbies, they began to realize that art was a good way to spend time and be entertained. I know quite a few people who started sketching more and more and figured out they loved it. On social media, I would continuously see more posts about art and how people were getting involved with it. Specifically painting though, a lot of people were becoming more interested in painting because it was very versatile and easy to do. 

As the pandemic continued to get worse, most people were on stricter lockdown rules. The stores started to become vacant of art supplies, mostly canvases and paint. People were just continuing to buy up all of the canvases and artists would have to stock up on them in case the stores didn’t have them when they needed them. I already had a lot of canvases so luckily I was able to use them when I needed to. 

Along with painting, many people started drawing or doing digital art. Digital art is super popular right now, people don’t have to leave to get the supplies they need. It is one of my favorite forms of art because despite people thinking it doesn’t require as much work as other forms, it still takes just as long and you have to be dedicated to it. Digital art is also very helpful for people trying to start a career in art. It is easier to share that art than it is traditional art. 

Animation is also a form of art, a lot of people are entering this field because of quarantine. Making animations of their own characters or their favorite characters can be a good way to relieve stress. Some people are even wanting to make their own animes, using their friends as voice actors. Animation is very time-consuming, taking many frames and having to use very precise lines to get the action you want.
People have also been using clay to make things recently. I’ve seen people make cups, vases, jewelry holders and other containers. They are putting more variation into it, making it just their own. A lot of people have stopped caring about what other people say about it, and just focusing on if they like it or not. It has been adding more personalization to their art and making them appear different from other artists. I have been using clay as well to make random things, I don’t care about people’s opinion on my art now and just make things that I love.