KEWASKUM, Wis. — Local artists are excited to be back in art fairs after a pause during the pandemic.
COVID-19 shut down a lot of events, including art fairs. But now art fairs are back, which is a major plus for vendors who have been patiently waiting to showcase their work.
Chris Leung has a passion for art, but ceramics are his bread and butter. He’s a talented, yet humble man who only began learning the basics of ceramics a handful of years ago. And now he sells his creations at art fairs across the Midwest each year.
“We started doing art shows now about four or five years so the response has been very, very good,” Leung said.
When art shows came to a halt because of COVID-19, it was hard for Leung. He said he picked up art as a hobby during retirement. However, he said interacting with his customers came to be very meaningful to him. During the pandemic, this is what Leung said he missed the most.
“Some of them were so happy to see us back,” Leung said. “They would say we are so happy the art fair is going again and we can see you again.”
With this season of art fairs back in action, Leung’s been hard at work creating more pieces to ensure his tent is stocked up at the fairs.
“All together, for a typical show, I would bring at least 120 and for a bigger show I would bring at least 200 pieces,” Leung said.
Leung said getting all these pieces ready is no easy task. But he’s happy to be back using his hands and sharing his artwork, which has touches of his Asian heritage molded into them.
“They get to learn a little bit more about my culture, and maybe it will inspire them a little more to maybe take a trip to Asia down the road,” Leung said.
He said he is proud of his work and excited to be back out at fairs this season.