Winged Canvas, an art hub in Markham, is moving its art classes online in response to the emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fei Lu, 35, grew up in Markham. In 2014, Fei and her husband opened a four-studio art hub at 185 Bullock Drive that soon became very busy, a “bustling” business where anyone could pick up and develop art skills.
They celebrated their sixth anniversary on Family Day and, not too long after in mid-March, were forced to temporarily close their art hub and adapt their services to go online.
It was a saddening experience for Fei and her staff, as they were all set and “ready to go” with their March break art camp, a program that had been sold out and was one of their most important sources of revenue.
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They were also steady and ready to go with their summer art camps; however, those have been cancelled as well, and Fei is in the process of issuing refunds.
However, one of the biggest business decisions Fei had to make was to say goodbye to their Markham art hub, the only physical space they had to operate in, and go completely online.
Some services could no longer continue, such as commissions and the art gallery. However, they have adapted some of their programs, such as drawing foundations, drawing techniques, animation, finger drawing and digital art, to go online at the same quality as it would be if it were in person.
Fei said the last month, although difficult, has really been about testing what works. She said that through some trials, they figured 8×8 would be the best free video-conferencing provider to use for online classes. “This has been working out, not sure if it’s going to be our permanent solution,” Fei said.
They have also been using Google Classrooms, and are asking customers for feedback about what it is they want to learn. “It’s been so different and we’ve had to adapt our teaching methods to new ways,” Fei said.
“Not sure if this will be permanent,” Fei said of the future for the art hub, adding that ”I don’t think anyone knows what is going to happen.”
