Whenever we hear the word “art”, a lot of things run in our minds. We can’t define it in a single word—an expression of our thoughts, emotions, intuitions, and desires—literally, it’s everything!

For many, they find it a way to escape from uncertainties, to cope with life’s untimely circumstances, and to heal from the darkest days brought by the past—a powerful force ever existed.

This quarantine period, enthusiasts and hobbyists are utilizing the time to create art to get away from pandemic anxiety and stress.

And here are some stories of artists who find art as a companion in time of the pandemic.

EVERYONE CAN MAKE ART

She loves to take photos of all things mundane, a beach and coffee junkie, and outgoing lad who’s making the most out of her artsy-life.

Here, we met Denise Ocampo, an ad agency lady who has been juggling work-life balance since the pandemic started.

She’s been doing digital and traditional arts as part of her system.

If she’s not in a coffee shop or beach, she's probably preparing her art materials for another journey in her own creative universe.

Denise shared with us how she enjoys creating masterpieces in the comfort of their home and how art helps her to get through this entire period.

“Art has helped me ease stress and it has become an outlet for my imagination—it has provided me a sense of freedom despite being confined at home for the majority of the time,” she said.

We asked her about the importance of art in her life and she told The Lookout that art has been something she’s always been passionate about from her childhood up to adult life.

 “It’s something I’ve always wanted to pursue if given the chance to switch careers. It does not only give me a sense of flow and freedom but it’s also a huge mood and motivation driver for me.”

For Denise, art is very therapeutic; it allows her to escape from reality and just immerse her into a world created with either of her pen or paintbrush.

“I do think that making art, in any way you can, can help release negative feelings which I feel like we all have accumulated since the start of the year,” Denise on how she believed that art can make someone feel sane and safe.

As an artist, we got the chance to take pieces of advice from her to all young aspiring artists out there who see art as everything and she told: “Everyone can make art—art isn’t limited to just drawing or painting.”

“There is always an art form for everyone. It’s just a matter of figuring out what type of art form you’re suited for. You won’t find your own style or form right away and it’s okay! Exploring plays a huge role in the learning process and at the end of the day, it’s about creating something that makes you happy,” she added

PAINTING INSTEAD OF OVERTHINKING

Whenever she’s at home, she finds herself grabbing a paintbrush to create magic from her vast thoughts and unspeakable mind.

She’s a one-of-a-kind artist since birth! A creative-junkie of her own colorful world, a musician, a writer, and an HR Corporate Trainer—meet Joisha or better known as “Tita Halaman” as what she prefers to call her.

Art helps her a lot to paint her negative feelings away during this difficult time.

“Instead of overthinking, I voice out and express my negative thoughts through painting and writing poems. It helps me to put my mind at ease and exercise my creativity,” she said.

She also does causes, in fact, she recently joined online benefit exhibitions/auctions for all the front liners and co-artists out there who are in need of help.

“Art helps me to express myself more. It helps me to beautifully communicate my thoughts/concepts/ideas to other people. Most of my friends are artists as well, I owe everything to art ‘cause without art, I could’ve not met awesome people,” Tita Halaman said on the importance of art in her life.

For Tita Halaman, she believed that art has the power to keep someone sane and safe.

“Art helps you to know yourself more. Creating art can help us acknowledge and recognize feelings that have been lurking in our subconscious. Lastly, art can greatly help to manage behaviors, process feelings, reduce stress and anxiety, and increase self-esteem,” she said.

For her co-artists, she urged everyone to be more passionate about every single thing they do.

“Try to be more passionate than you were yesterday. For me, everything boils down to how bad you want it. Same with how much passion is in there. Something must drive you to extremely motivate yourself to push harder,” Tita Halaman said.

She told everybody that we all should try to shape our mindset, be more hungry for learnings, and consistently communicate and establish networks to those artists we look up to.

"Support other artists as much as you can and find time to make/promote art every day. Sometimes we can experience an art block along the way, but at least you’re still moving by promoting art from your co-artist friends," Tita Halaman added.

“Don’t stop moving every day for your art. Be more visible, online, and offline. List down your strategies and plans. Try to make a calendar. Also, for those who haven’t found their art style yet, go choose an astounding unique art style that you’d love to show to the world. Don’t let the critics limit your creativity,” she added.

For some, art is just a part of our culture, but for many, it’s mainly the reason why they exist.

It’s been a good thing to hear a lot of stories about how art moved their lives and how it makes lives happier and meaningful this pandemic.

To all artists out there, let your fantasies come into reality! And to you, hang in there, we will all get through this!