Creativity in the Time of Coronavirus

I wanted to share this short video, which I personally found inspiring. In times of crisis, the seeming futility of my chosen profession in fashion often leaves me feeling a bit "less than" friends who are doctors or journalists or public servants. Art and other "non-essential" businesses like fashion can be easily dismissed or even criticized for being insensitive to the gravity of world events such as war, hunger, and yes, a global health pandemic. I would agree that a doctor or a nurse or a farmer are certainly more critical at this time than almost everything else but if we carve out all the creatives, we would be left with a society that swims in very dark and dystopian waters.

Imagine a world where everyone had to be "essential" by these definitions. That would mean no music, no Netflix, no chefs teaching us tasty new recipes, no team sports, no paintings, no books, no TikTok or Instagram and no fashion either. We would only exist to ensure that everyone survives but perhaps where no one thrives.

The man in this video is a shoemaker. This was his calling. He is intense about his work in a way that leaves no doubt that he does this for his own personal fulfillment; the penultimate "artist." It is exactly the purity of his pursuits that imbues his art with meaning, which in turn bestows happiness on to a stranger who may one day wear his creations. By much broader philosophical definitions than we ever think to credit, he is essential.

I am no fool...most fashion does not do this but he allows us to dream...which in times of crisis, really does seem necessary.

ZAPATERÍA from Travis Lee Ratcliff on Vimeo