No lockdown for art!

Before the pandemic, Berlin-based comedian Erika Ratcliffe toured every week, telling jokes to an eager public. Now, she gets by with the savings from a writing gig and is considering switching careers altogether. "A lot of people are doing online comedy shows on Zoom or via livestream, but I don’t think that works — I need the reaction from the audience."

Ratcliffe is one of many creative-industry professionals in Germany who have found their lives turned upside down and their futures increasingly uncertain as the pandemic continues, particularly since the country went into a second lockdown in the fall of 2020. Theaters and museums remain closed until further notice. Some sectors have been especially hard-hit: The Berlin club scene, where just a year ago sweaty revelers were packed in like sardines dancing into the wee hours, is not expected not to return to full operation until the end of 2022, according to the Berlin Club Commission.

"Miss You," an outdoor photography exhibition in Berlin, Hamburg and Baden-Baden running March 2-16, pays homage to arts workers who have largely fallen out of the public eye. Portraits of 52 actors, musicians, dancers, DJs, visual artists and others taken by the photographers of Berlin’s legendary Ostkreuz photo agency will appear in backlit showcases dotted throughout the cities. The exhibition sees itself as a "sign of life from the artists and a call from the public to the artists," yet it also raises questions about the value accorded to the arts in society. 

"I think it’s politically very important that we don't shut down art," says curator Susanne Rockweiler, who co-organized the exhibition. When museums and venues closed in November, she felt she needed to find a way to bring art to the public. "If the politicians and the scientists decide it's better to be in the lockdown, then we have to be in the lockdown, but nevertheless, I think this is the strength of art, that we always find ways to come to the people to show what we have to show — to start exchanges, dialogues and offer new perspectives" she says.

German-Ghanian conceptual artist Philip Kojo Metz, who is currently preparing an exhibition in Togo, feels the significance of his field has been overlooked. "It's a health crisis, and of course we have to do something about it, but for me it was strange from the beginning that artists, musicians, and everyone who works in the cultural field were not considered 'systemically relevant,'" he said, referring to the German term "systemrelevant," which describes professions considered indispensable for the functioning of society and that could continue to operate at certain stages of lockdown.

"Culture is important in a free, democratic society. Why? Because having alternatives and a broad variety of opinions is essential for a functioning democracy," he told DW. He considers himself fortunate to have only lost one-third of the projects he scheduled over the past year. 

Reluctantly going digital

The days, performances, exhibitions and events online are essentially the only way artists can stay visible — yet going digital comes with its own set of unique challenges. Independent choreographer and performer Carolin Jüngst modified her recent dance performance to include a digital version that's part documentary, part experimental film. "It’s still the question for my scene if we should invest in digital formats much more or not," she said.

This quest for visibility left her feeling isolated, since an online performance is no substitute for an in-person experience: "It’s not a live event, a place for exchange or meeting people" she told DW. 

Like many independent artists, Jüngst is anxious about the future and her finances. While she at times struggles to stay motivated putting on a performance and navigating coronavirus regulations, she also feels pressure to take every job that comes her way, out of fear for the future. "I think everyone's very worried that there's not going to be a lot of money, that the funding is being spent now because we're in the middle of a crisis," she said, citing hard-won battles for government funding for independent artists in the last year. 

Indeed, the culture scene will "need longer than other industries to get out of the crisis," according to a recent study by the Federal Competence Center for Culture and Creative Industries. The ongoing pandemic could lead to sales losses of more than €30 billion ($36 billion) for the branch in 2021. 

That the German government increased its budget for culture in 2021 by €155 million is good news for the industry amid the pandemic. Yet to what extent independent artists like Jüngst will benefit in an increasingly competitive atmosphere remains to be seen. 

Nurturing hope

Solo oboist Cristina Gomez Godoy hopes that audiences won't be afraid to return to theatres and concert halls when the time comes. "I think people are craving for live experiences, and I hope it’s going to be a boom when we start again" she told DW. 

The 2020-2021 season should have been career-changing for the Berlin-based oboist from Spain who was selected as an ECHO Rising Star and was scheduled to do a prestigious traveling concert series. Most performances have been cancelled, although several have taken place in streaming format.  "We’re just not giving this experience to the public and the public to us," she lamented

Hope for a better future, and the possibility she will be able to perform the final concerts of her tour in Spain in the summer keep her afloat: "I’m hoping that things will be back to normal little by little."