Betty Musgrove: 23/03/2020 to 30/05/2020
Betty has made Brunswick home for the past decade. She is a visual artist working across a variety of media including digital and analogue printing, drawing, soft sculpture, 3D collage and textiles. She also works in the community arts sector for a feminist-focused organisation. Betty is also a chronic asthmatic who has been hospitalised several times over her life
When Covid-19 cases hit Australia in late February/early March, Betty was making costumes for a major Melbourne Festival. Betty explains “I remember going to the festival with hand sanitiser in my pocket and thinking, this whole Covid situation is getting intense. You could feel the tension rising.” Her contract finished at the start of March. By the end of March, with reasonable concern of her personal health, Betty went into strict isolation and made major changes to ensure she remained healthy and safe. She made the hard decision to move out of her 6 person share house of 10 years, due in part to different perspectives within the household regarding safety precautions. Luckily, Betty secured temporary accommodation with friends with similar health concerns and Covid precautionary practices.
During isolation Betty has found it hard, like a lot of artists right now, to stay creative and make new work. During lockdown she describes the “pleasant surprise” of having turned to puzzles as a form of distraction and mindfulness. She decided to turn some or her pre-existing artworks into puzzles as an experiment. Her first puzzle design, first meant for herself and new housemates, has now sparked interest within the wider community. Betty is now selling them in small edition runs.
Instagram: bettymusgrove/
Interview and photos by Simon Aubor. Photographed prior to the 2020 Flourish: Arts Recovery Grant