THE COVID-19 crisis has hewn through the arts without compassion, but a modest project in the New England North West of NSW has given hundreds of residents a communal creative outlet in the midst of a global pandemic.
Regional arts body Arts North West’s Panorama Project is a free sketchbook project open to residents of all abilities. Since May, over 900 small books were delivered to participants to fill with their creative thoughts, and record personal perspectives on these challenging times.
Participants were encouraged to approach the 16-page books in any way they chose. People used their books for drawing, painting and printmaking, photography and writing, journaling, collage, textiles and mixed-media.
The project has just reached its first milestone in August, with participants dropping off their completed sketchbooks to collection points in communities across Arts North West’s 12 council areas. From there, the books will be collected and organised for an exhibition tour from October 2020 through 2021 to small and large libraries in all corners of the New England North West region.
The project found inspiration in the international Sketchbook Project at New York’s Brooklyn Library, which sends out similarly small sketchbooks to any interested person, and then a place for their sketchbooks their collection.
Panorama Project coordinator Michèle Jedlicka said the project was designed to be inclusive for people of every ability and interest, with participants accessing disability support services and organisations supporting the socially isolated, and aged.
“I am continually surprised and moved by the range of expression and passion from the images sent through from the participants,” Michèle said.
“I believe the arts are a great leveler, and a safe space where every person has a voice and a place. It brings people together through collective self-expression. This project values every participant.”
Participant Isabelle Devos said the Panorama Project came along at a good time, as she was recovering from a foot injury. An avid bushwalker she admitted she had been worried about witnessing the devastation from the recent bushfires in the Armidale area.
“I rarely sit still for long periods and these became meditative and peaceful times for me. It is also enjoyable to know that I am part of a larger group of others embarking on mark making and writing in a little sketchbook to be seen and hopefully enjoyed by others,” she said.
Armidale professor Dr Marty Branagan said the project provided him with some memorable creative experiences.
“It has been great to have a deadline to encourage participation and artmaking. I've been encouraged to put aside other commitments and walk more with my sketchbook, go into the bush with friends and family, and spend time in the studio,” he said.
Mariam Ansari lives at Gunnedah, and said she had really enjoyed the project, “and appreciated the opportunity of presenting my own language and culture,” she said.
“I had never kept a diary before, and I am thinking of going on with it.” Mariam Ansari
Manilla resident Philip Williams said the project was a ‘Wow’ experience.
“For me I started a ‘lock down drawing project’ so when Panorama started it made me set a goal and rediscovered old childhood hobby,” he said. “Everyone can draw. Just have to pick up a pencil and flow.”
Among participants were ceramicists, fibre artists, sculptors, and authors, including celebrated writer Sophie Masson.
“Taking part in the Panorama Project was a lovely experience--and a liberating one!” she said.
“It was a playful thing to do - almost back to the days of my childhood, when I kept a scrapbook, sticking things in, enjoying the collection of bits and pieces. But it was also an examination of my own creativity as a writer and how it responded to the very singular times we find ourselves in.”
Artist Sandra Gilvear said she had just launched her arts business on the day the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in Australia, and her plans were upended.
“Then along came the Panorama Project,” she said.
“Something where I could be relaxed and try a few new things even if I’m not skilled at them! It has not only given me a way to exercise my creativity beyond coloured pencils, but the opportunity to share, contribute, and connect with a wider audience.
“If one picture in my book makes someone smile across its travels then I have helped build a healthier and stronger art community.”
Gunnedah Shire librarian Christiane Birkett supported older project participants through her Brain Training groups, and her library team used a sketchbook to document the times.
“I look on the booklet as a way of preserving the work that the library and the staff did during the shutdown to ensure that library members still had access to books and services, and that the library would be better than ever when it re-opened to the public,” she said.
“I also enjoyed the interaction with the people and institutions - nursing homes, and retirement village - who were compiling booklets.”
Arts North West Executive Director Caroline Downer said the project illustrated how important community arts participation is for the health and resilience of a community.
“Being part of Panorama Project has allowed people in the New England North West to feel connected, and at the same time creatively express their moods and feelings during these unusual times,” she said.
“I am more than delighted in how many people have participated in this project – from our small villages to our larger towns and from across 100,000 square kilometres. We are enjoying the creativity shown by our participants; the calm meditative drawings, the documentation of daily life, and the extraordinary positivity on the pages.”
You can learn more about the Panorama Project and view work in progress by participants here: http://www.artsnw.com.au/panorama-project/
