Five things graphic designers can do to stay creative despite COVID-19 quarantine.

The pandemic of the coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to spread exponentially worldwide and the motto is “stay at home” but being isolated can make it quite difficult for graphic designers to stay creatively motivated. There is currently a lack of communication with other creatives or clients, many design projects are canceled or on hold, and the daily news cover only one topic, the worldwide spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). If you are one of these affected designers that suffer from isolation during the COVID-19 quarantine, here are five tips on what you can do to stay creative.

1st: Challenge yourself on a daily basis to stay creatively motivated.

During the past years, we have featured many of these daily projects started by creatives from around the globe to challenge their own creativity and improve their design skills. Our daily readers may remember Vasjen Katro‘s daily poster project called Baugasm. If you don’t have many projects to work on at the moment, you should probably start such a self-initiated project. It can be fun to work on something personal without the influence of clients.

Baugasm posters.
Baugasm posters by Vasjen Katro.

2nd: Contribute to projects such as 36 Days of Type

From March 2 to April 8 every graphic designer, illustrator or digital artist is invited to contribute to 36 Days of Type to share their own creative take on the letterforms and share it with the world. The 2020 edition is already in full swing, but if you have some free capacity, you will surely manage to get in.

36 Days of Type contribution by Charlie Davis
36 Days of Type contribution from 2018 by Charlie Davis.

3rd: Monetize your creativity despite missing jobs.

All the motivation is gone if you don’t have any paid work to do. During the pandemic of COVID-19, many businesses are closed for an indefinite period of time and that’s why many freelance designers currently have no ongoing projects and money is running out. But there is another way of monetizing creativity—you can become a contributor to platforms such as Adobe Stock, iStock by Getty Images, Shutterstock, Creative Market, Envato Elements, or YouWorkForThem to sell and license your work online.

Stock Graphics
The best websites to download professional stock graphics.

4th: Follow the best graphic design blogs and social media channels.

Only a few months ago, we featured a hand-picked selection of the 15 best graphic design blogs as well as a selection of outstanding graphic designers and leading design studios on Instagram. Just follow these online publications and creatives to stay focused, creative, and motivated during the COVID-19 quarantine.

The Best Graphic Design Blogs in 2020
The Best Graphic Design Blogs in 2020.

5th: Walk through your favorite museums virtually.

It’s no secret that art is a great source of inspiration even for contemporary designers. But what to do if all museums are closed? Don’t worry, many world-class museums offer virtual tours including New York’s MoMA, The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, Tate Britain in London, The Art Institute of Chicago, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Musée d’Orsay in Paris or New York’s Guggenheim Museum, just to name a few.


That was our list of five things graphic designers can do to stay creative despite COVID-19 quarantine. Stay motivated, stay healthy, and most importantly stay at home!

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