Printmaking Resilience in Pandemic Times

Abstract

The global SARS-CoV 2 pandemic imposed exceptional circumstances in all areas of life that we had previously taken for granted. We still do not know if we are over the worse, or if modified variants will appear in future. What is certain is that Covid has altered our way of life and the nature of our social, creative and cultural activities.

Knowing, in the summer of 2021, that the theme of IMPACT 12 would be “The Printmakers’ Voice” I asked myself: How has the pandemic affected us printmakers? I sent a questionnaire out to various artists and workshops in different regions to find out how they had faced lockdown and how they had been affected creatively.

The big question was how to start the conversation. Luckily, the Internet has been an indispensable
tool to engage directly with artists and printmaking studios alike. This article picks out a multitude of voices from confinement: a collection of impressions that range from the particular to the general. Some people apologised for not taking part. I am sure that in time, a deeper and more rigorous study will be carried out in the future. But I wish to thank the participants in my survey for their generosity, their contributions and their time.