Lynn Basa has an inspiring response and call to action to the question, "What is getting you th

A photorealistic mural by David Orozco of the Blue Goose Market, that was originally there in the 1920’s, is in the works near the corner of Milwaukee and Allen in Avondale, Chicago. The Blue Goose went out of business during the Great Depression because it gave away more food than it sold to its neighbors.

"I sprung into action on March 16 and created a fundraiser for the bars and restaurant workers on our three blocks who had suddenly found themselves without a livelihood. I felt like I couldn't in good conscience get back in the studio. I raised $3000 in 5 days from neighbors to distribute on the three-block focus of the Corner Project (which I turned into a non-profit called the Milwaukee Avenue Alliance)."

"My next action is to raise money to complete the Blue Goose mural. Before and during this pandemic ordeal I organized a mural by a local artist, David Orozco, to be done on a derelict building across from my studio. (Info attached) What the mural represents -- the immigrant, working-class roots of our main street -- is going to be more important than ever with a recession on the horizon. The pandemic is like the earthquake, and the recession is like the tsunami that it causes. I'm already thinking ahead to that."

"So the only inspiration I can think to offer at this time is for artists to think beyond their studios and do what they can do to help others. One idea that I came across was making face masks if you can sew.

Then, of course, we need to put the metaphorical oxygen mask on ourselves and figure out how we're going to survive in the new normal. Instead of asking artists about their work at this time, I'd ask them to do a mental exercise to envision what the immediate- and mid-term future is going to be like for art, the art business, and artists. Where do we see ourselves fitting in that future? How will we survive and thrive while being relevant to our times? Think of how the artists mobilized during the AIDS crisis and created ActUp. What is our ActUp for Covid-19? (And then share the answers for me because I'm going to be teaching a class on this at the Hyde Park Art Center in a few weeks!)" --Lynn Basa

Thank you, for all you have done and continue to do Lynn!

Learn more about the mural and support these efforts at @milwaukeeavenuealliance ❤️🙏🏽

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