Covid-19 and its Impacts on Australian Arts

Covid 19 and Australia’s Art Ecology
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Introduction
For the past three years, the world has been reeling from the global impacts of a pandemic. Economies had begun going into recession as society was literally brought to a standstill. The Covid 19 pandemic seems to have changed everything. It has reset how things are to be done. All activities that involved physical contact; human interactions, were suspended too. Australia was not exempted; it also bore the brunt of the virus. This even pushed the nation’s government to enforce one of the world's longest and strictest national lockdowns. Australia’s art ecology was one of the most affected by the country’s social and entertainment scene. The evolving conditions of the Covid 19 pandemic have also greatly impacted the arts world in Australia in unprecedented ways. It has impacted technology, the art professionals, the art markets and Australian society at large.
Impact on the role of technology
The most obvious impact of the pandemic in the art scene has been a shift from physical to online applications. Art students are now learning it online, and their trainers have opted to do so in order for them also to safeguard their source of income. When it comes to real art, there are a few that can be done online as well. However, some art cannot be as authentic as the feel when online, and the complexities involved in putting them online also makes it tough to do so.
Like the rest of the world, the pandemic resulted in social distancing and working from home as authorities put measures to prevent further transmissions and infections. These measures were a blessing in disguise for technology, as it resulted in more innovative ways to engage with others. There was the development of zoom, while video conferencing usage went a notch higher. Artists in Australia also had to embrace this as a way to ensure that the ravages of the pandemic would not completely halt their trade. Museums have also had to embrace digital catalogues in response to the pandemic (Noehrer, Gilmore, Jay & Yehudi, 2021).
There has generally been a significant shift in Australian art, as the sector has embraced a digital platform for its content, where the public can access content through their laptops, phones and tablets online. These online sites are also customized to ensure that a visitor can perform a virtual tour therein, and an interactive platform that integrates both audio and video (Chen, 2021). The catch however, is that the embracement of technology has not been uniform. Whereas the buildings housing these art pieces might be technologically integrated, some artists are not. This is especially the case with indigenous artists, who tend to be less digitally connected compared to those in the towns.
The pandemic has also helped to lay bare the serious issue of imbalance and inequality between the indigenous population and the rest of the population. It has further brought the issue of the digital divide into sharp focus. There is digital inequity, with the non-indigenous portion of the industry being more connected than the indigenous ones. This means that the cataloguing process of these distinct pieces of art might not be qu...