By now it’s probably pretty safe to say that most of us are starting to go a little stir crazy. It’s day 7 of a nationwide lockdown against Covid-19 and we are doing our best to stay busy and stay creative during all this.
Some of our members have come up with great ways not only to stay creative but also of collaborating virtually. Here is a look at a few of our favorite projects currently happening around the city.
FIRST UP: DAVID HARTONO
David is our favorite projection mapping artist and co-founder over at monogrid Digital Interactive Studio. We wish we were his neighbors because this is what they get to see projected out their windows and on the sides of their buildings. So cool right?
David says: “Tonight during the quarantine I project some flowers and a bird to entertain my neighbors and keep the creative spirit up”
Thank you David! Even if we’re not neighbors we’re still loving these videos!
Be sure to check David’s instagram page for more of his magical projections.
NEXT UP: PAUL BEEL
Paul is an incredibly talented portrait artist who has started a video chat portrait series titled Digital Bocaccio as a reference to Bocaccio’s The Decameron. Written in (c.1351) during the black plague. The book contains stories of those quarantined in a villa just outside of Florence.
Paul tells us: “I don’t do solitary well, so I revived this series of quick, decisive oil portraits of a community in seclusion. They are painted live on video calling and have become quite a hit. They’ve become a social and financial buffer against covid 19.”
Paul will be on the Creative People in Florence Instagram takeover this week to show us more of his project so be sure to head on over for the latest updates. You can also see more of his work on his website and his own instagram
JONNY HUNTER is a documentary filmmaker who is heading a creative video project that has taken an original approach to collaboration. The idea is to get a group to record a description of their day in quarantine (what you do, what you can’t do, how you feel), accompanied by a 1-minute shot from a window (using a phone handheld is fine if you need to.) and, if you want, some shots of the inside space too. He will then be editing and turning the footage into one film. We are very much looking forward to seeing the end results which we will be sure to share with you. If you would like to participate he is still accepting submission – email johnny.c.hunter@gmail.com.
In Jonny’s words: “The Coronavirus pandemic has been a major disruption to the life of Florence and the lives of people who live here. A lot of people are stuck at home, anxious about losing work or just bored on their own, and the city itself is eerily empty. There’s a lot of potential to record this incredible situation but also it’s a good opportunity for people to get involved in something creative when there might not be much else to do. We’ve been trying to gather a large group of people to document their life in quarantine – the view outside the window playing an increasingly meaningful role to people locked inside, their thoughts increasingly reflective in isolation – and then edit them into a patchwork film of Florentine-life-on-hold. We’re still gathering so it’s not yet clear what the final film will look like, but so far there’s been some amazingly interesting, personal and insightful inputs and we’re very happy with how it’s shaping up.”
Be sure to check out more of Jonny’s work on his website, Instagram, Vimeo.
Bookbinder HAIM SHUSHAN and graphic designer ITAY BLAISH while not currently living in Florence did spend several years here and as we know Florence is always a part of us no matter where we go. The two are hosting an open call for illustrations, zines, and posters or whatever suits you. They have opened an Instagram account specifically for this project where all of the works will be shared.
In their words: “This online zine is collecting reactions of artists, designers, poets and so on to create a sort of artistic discursive platform that is a memory of this special time we are living in. We are very happy to invite you to tag us or submit your ideas, design, creations, and thoughts”
You can submit your entry to 19divoc@gmail.com.
We hope you enjoy these projects and that they bring you a bit of joy in these difficult days. Have you heard of any other projects that you think we should know about please be sure to get in touch!
And we hope you will share this post as much as possible, this will help our community so much more than you know! Thank you all for your continued support of CPiF
creativepeopleinflorence.com 