MADISON, Wis. (SPECTRUM NEWS) -- Following the week of unrest, the City of Madison has been helping the downtown Madison mural project thrive.  Up to $80,000 has been given to struggling artists coping with the pandemic.

Madison Arts Program Administrator Karin Wolf says the artistic community needs all the help it can get right now for the 80 plus projects in the State St. community.

"Artists are disproportionately out of work, and they are really suffering economically, I would say closer to 90, 95% right now, having a hard time paying their rent and feeding their families," Wolf said.

For a few days last week, artist Liubov Szwako was using his rent money to buy hundreds of dollars of spray paint for his effort.  The Mexican-born talent never lost sight of the reason why he and so many are spending what little they have on these projects.

'It's not about the money, it's about beautifying something and then spreading the message through the words,"  Wolf said.

Presently, the city likely leaving the art work up for the foreseeable future.  Central Madison Business Improvement Director Tiffany Kenney says this is the right step to take. 

"We might see more pieces up next week that you have never seen before," she said.  "We’re talking about ways we can preserve it we were talking about digital transfers so maybe they maintain some spots downtown, maybe we open some of the glass, but we put the displays inside because then people can still open their shops but still showcase the works, so there is still a lot of opportunities to still see this work.’

In the long run, the art may go to the schools, other organizations or possibly back to the artists themselves.