THE CREATIVE COMMUNITY HAS COME TOGETHER LIKE NEVER BEFORE,
TO HELP EACH OTHER GET THROUGH THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMICnetwork
CULTURE
F
or many of us, the first signs of the
effects that coronavirus was going
to have on the world came near the
end of February, as events such as SXSW and
GDC (Game Developers Conference) began to
be cancelled. From then on, everything
accelerated at a bewildering pace. At first,
creatives were encouraged to work from
home, then forced to. Soon freelancers were
having their commissions cancelled, while
employees faced being laid off – not to
mention magazines, including Computer
Arts, being unceremoniously terminated.
It’s been a whirlwind, and as we go to press
for our final issue, it’s impossible to predict
where the creative industries will be by the
time this magazine is in your hands. But one
thing’s for sure: throughout everything the
level of support creatives have shown each
other has been heartwarming.
As hardship began to bite, support groups
have sprung up across Slack and social media,
enabling people to share advice on everything
from claiming benefits and using Zoom to
sources of free entertainment and education
to help with the kids. Meanwhile, those that
have the money and resources have pulled
out all the stops to provide work for
freelancers bereft of earning opportunities.
Serif, makers of Affinity Designer and
Affinity Photo, led the way, by repurposing its
entire marketing budget to fund 100
freelance gigs. Similarly, Format, an online
portfolio service, launched a $25,000 fund for
freelance photographers and visual artists,
while Disability Arts Online allocated £8,000
to a new commissions pot, to help disabled
artists during the crisis. Individual creatives
across the world pitched in too, contributing
generously to crowdfunding efforts that
emerge spontaneously to evolving events.SEE MORE INSPIRING CREATIVE NEWS AT COMPUTERARTS.CREATIVEBLOQ.COM
Clockwise from top left:
Serif is offering a
three-month trial of its
Affinity software; Gary
Hustwit streamed his
Helvetica documentary,
while Mo Williams is
teaching drawing skills;
Michael Flrup is
teaching app design for
free; Format is funding
freelance creatives.