Many people are finding ways to adapt to the unexpected changes that have taken place since the start of the pandemic. For Sarah Edmond, the sudden shift from teaching at Norwich Free Academy to being home every day jump-started a project she had been putting on hold since buying her house in 2013. Sarah is the visionary behind “Quarantine Tiny Paintings”, a collaborative project that began with 15 blank 3”x3” canvases and has quickly blossomed into 238 (and counting) small works of art.

Sarah made one of her life-long dreams a reality when she purchased her Aunt and Uncle’s home seven years ago. The Norwich home was the hub for Sarah’s family when she was growing up and served as the gathering place for family celebrations. With her husband, 3 kids, and 2 dogs now living in the house, Sarah had ideas for how to make it their own, including a wall of art made by people her family loved. Sarah purchased 15 tiny canvases with a plan to ask friends and family to paint them so that she could hang their art on a wall in the new house. Life got busy and the canvases ended up stashed in a drawer until quarantine hit. “Everything happens (or doesn't) for a reason. Once we all found ourselves stuck at home, my family and I sat down one night, and each painted a canvas. Then I had a different idea. I figured this would be the perfect time for people to create something, and our wall of art would have an even more special meaning. So, I reached out to a few friends to see if they wanted to do it. Then other people caught wind of it, and they wanted to do it.” Sarah soon found herself repeatedly ordering canvases, constantly buying out the stock on Amazon and Michaels, both online and in the area stores.

So how does a project like this come together? Sarah explains that she delivers, or mails, a 3”x3” canvas to whoever expresses interest in being part of the project. The person creates their canvas and then gives it back to Sarah when they’re done. There are no rules, except of course to have fun! Many artist use acrylics, but Sarah has also received paintings done with oils, some done with marker or pen, and others with found objects to make them 3D. With no parameters in place, there is a huge variety of subject matter and even some variations in sizing. “We did have a few people send in some 4x4's that they provided themselves” Sarah points out. While many people only complete one canvas, Sarah doesn’t limit the number of pieces artists contribute, “One friend asked me to send her 10 so each family member could do 2. They had so much fun they went out and bought more and ended up sending us 22 back! I sent my brother and his family 5, and they sent me 12 back. Another family asked for 12. Another friend of mine was sent 1, and he ended up ordering more and sent back 6 with another one on the way.” Painters range from the age of 1 to those in their 70's. “It's a good mix of ages but mostly adults and the level of talent ranges from never having drawn or painted before all the way to professional artist.”

When more and more tiny paintings kept arriving for her wall, Sarah recognized that she didn’t want her house to be the only one benefiting from the project, “The fact that people wanted to share their talents with me to build this wall in my house is what made me want to pay it forward- it didn't feel right to be getting all this art from all these people- some of whom I have never even met- and not honor them in some way.”  To honor the artists, Sarah committed to pay it forward in a variety of ways. She’s made a monetary donation to the Spark Makerspace in New London and contributed hygiene products to the Integrated Day Charter School’s “Circle the Wagons” fundraiser for families of the school affected by COVID-19. In July she donated school supplies to Coach Tim Strong's backpack and school supply giveaway, and, all summer, for each canvas that was returned to her she has purchased a hygiene or cleaning product to contribute to Reliance Health's Care Cabinet.

Sarah recognizes that what started as a small endeavor to decorate a wall in her house has become so much more, “To date, we have 238 paintings on our dining room table, with around 65 more expected. This is WAY bigger than I imagined it would be! The Quarantine Tiny Paintings Project has become an opportunity for people to contribute to a collection representing creativity and community during a time of isolation and uncertainty”.

As the project grew, the ideas for sharing also grew. Sarah started a private Facebook group where contributing artists can join and see the canvases that Sarah has received.  “It's become a really great little community. People who were really afraid to even try a canvas ended up painting because of all the encouragement from people in the group, and honestly, whether someone paints a squiggle or a beautiful scene, I am equally excited.  It's really been a bright spot for me during this time, and many others have said the same.” With the artists’ permission, Sarah posts photos of each painting that comes back and tells a short story of how she knows the contributor (if she does know them) and what each artists’ painting means to them. She also uses the page to promote artists’ work if they have a business or artist page to promote. Sarah expressed pure joy in the project’s ability to help inspire a friend to return to their craft, “One friend saw what we were doing and revived her painted reclaimed wooden sign business, which she had closed down 2 years ago…I am so happy to see that because we LOVE her work!”

While the Quarantine Tiny Paintings Project has evolved, Sarah’s original plan to hang the art on a wall in her house has stayed consistent, “My husband will build big grid-type frames so each painting has a space, which will make it easier to hang them, rather than hanging each one individually- too much math involved in that!  And this will make them portable, too.”  Sarah and Reliance Health CEO, Carrie Dyer, have discussed hanging the paintings in the widows of the Reliance Health Gallery as a way to demonstrate an example of creativity and community during this time of physical distancing. Making a video display is another idea Sarah has to ensure that the work can be shared with a wider audience.  

As Sarah returns to the classroom, she is working on wrapping up the project, reviewing the spreadsheet she’s created to catalog all of the pieces she’s received, and tracking what is left to be returned. She’s expecting at least 65 more paintings to be sent her way, bringing the total number of contributions to the project to 303 (or more). “…it makes me sad to think about it ending. Maybe a round 2 if we find ourselves homebound again during the colder months?  We shall see.”