As an emerging artist, I yearned to be more apart of the art world in a more exclusive way; by participating in the elusive artist-in-residencies and other opportunities for professional development. However, I think my marketing background gets the best of me sometimes because I see both sides. When I look at it from a marketing perspective the so-called artist opportunities and residencies are just that, marketing ploys to help the organization and artist and it becomes a two-way deal. However, sometimes this isn’t always the case and the organization often offers way-too-good-to-be-true opportunities and artists get sucked in and then they end up paying for most of it. The best things and most rewarding things in life are free and the best things that have happened to my career have been free. A lot of the time I do try to see it from the organization’s perspective and if I like them enough – do go ahead and pay that entry-fee or that one-third for an experience. 

I spent 3.5 years applying for opportunities and projects on a consistent basis and got rejected by most. Until I realized that most of these opportunities are just marketing ploys to help grow an organization. I have been to a few residencies and done a few projects with the artist community but other than that nothing too large scale. But yet again, my marketing/business background is showing me the other side of things. It’s telling me that with the right planning, connections, proposals, funding, etc. you don’t need those artist opportunities because the people behind all of that have done that already. It’s part of their programming and capacity building of the organization. I think these opportunities are great for emerging artists or those who are stuck within their practice. But your success as an artist shouldn’t be based off of what you can put down in a resume/cv, as always it should be what you can put in a portfolio, depending on what your approach is of course. Since those rejections, I have realized this and am now ready to focus on building a portfolio around a strong artist statement and a vision. 

Since January, I’ve been working on a few projects. I’ve finished up my sponsored travel for the year and released a limited edition of Valley Moments of all the articles and photos I’ve taken on my trips. Additionally, I’ve launched my online store. This store is just more for personal endeavors as I make and launch things and redesigned my homepage to fit this store’s theme. I’ve been really working on organizing my work into themes/ideas; ‘Inquiry’, ‘realize’, ‘wanderlust’, ‘multimedia’, ‘on view’ – by doing so this helps me see where each project goes into my portfolio as I continue to work with brands and institutions and larger organizations. 

I have also been working on setting up my physical studio. This month I purchased a workstation from Ikea and was able to move and unpack my darkroom photography equipment to that shelving/workspace. I moved my microscope and just feel a bit more put together and ready to work. Sometimes I hate feeling the need to have my space be ‘ready’ in order for me to do things, but I’ve always felt this way, it makes me motivated. 

I am also no longer with the Pioneer Valley Mycological Association. I’ve explained why more in-depth in a previous post but I felt they completely took advantage and wasted my time and accused me of being difficult to work with when in reality all I’ve done was provide professional services with opportunities to learn why it should be done this way. They also didn’t understand that the rigidity of a brand identity is part of why it makes it a brand identity and not something you can continue to change with each edition of something. 

I’ve continued with my music practice, and started to learn Bach’s Bwv1009 and Eine Klein Nachtmusik on the keyboard. I’ve also started to learn a bit more about how to record strings and I think I’ve got to see it as not a midi signal but more of the sound of string instruments, so record them as if I was playing a string instrument rather than a keyboard/piano.

I have spent a year with a certain mycology group providing professional marketing and branding services on my own time because I genuinely enjoy this group of people, however I am appalled by the way I have been treated as a volunteer.

My logo project back in January was hijacked by the president at the time for trying to push group forward faster as we were forming into a non-profit. They used my trip to Guatemala as a justifiable reason (the trip was only 5 days) to push forward saying I had not worked on the logo fast enough (yet never provided me with a deadline) and wanted to use something they had slapped together in illustrator. I had responded to a disarray of feedback in a timely, yet professional manor and explained in great detail the danger of releasing an unfinished logo to the public at large. During this, I stated that as the publicity chair I felt that I was in a position to make decisions and that the president shouldn’t have made an ‘executive decision’ regarding a project that they weren’t even involved with. We were going to involve them towards the end of the project once everyone has voted on the logo to move forward. 

I will also not work with people who feel they need to make executive decisions all the time, that’s not how to run an organization – the people in charge of specific committees should be confident enough to work with the president to come together to make decisions. The founder even briefly agree with me on this because she was afraid of this happening with the former president. It’s extremely disappointing because the rest of the group seems to understand that I knew what I was doing.  I have been at a loss as to how this has all come to an end, but frankly a bit relieved this tension is gone from my life.

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Studio Wrap Up (SWU) – January 2018

The first month of 2018 is over, and it was filled with juggling a lot of things as usual. Although like most things in my life, it never all happens at once, which is a good thing as I wouldn’t be able to manage it all.

The beginning of the month, I spent celebrating birthdays in my family (as well as mine) and spent most of my free time going back and forth to home. In the midst of celebrations I also finally cut off a toxic client relationship in my life. It truly sadden me to do so as I stood behind their business and brand for so long and believed in it, but they had no concept of collaboration as well as respect for one’s time and talents. So far it has been for the best and all that has been lost is time and money. I have been cutting back my freelance graphic design work a ton since working full-time because I wanted to make sure I had the energy to put into the work at my day job.

Mid-month I began my volunteer duties as publicity chair in the Pioneer Valley Mycological Association. It was a rough start with a misuse of power in a significant project resulting in a member stepping down. I never like to make drama, as there is so much of it in my life in all of my projects, however, sometimes to prevent something from happening you have to make noise. They were making an unauthorized move and essentially ‘took over’ a project that wasn’t theirs to begin with, all in the name of ‘to get things going’ when there was no rush in the first place. It was a slap to my face and expertise as well as volunteered time. Thankfully the group recovered for the most part and we have moved on to releasing the first newsletter with a new design of the new year.

Not to mention this project drama happened while I was in Guatemala, celebrating my birthday and on a vacation and received a very hurtful email all the while. I check my emails at least once during every trip because of drama like that. The person in question used my trip as an reason to ‘act’ on the project in not the best way which made it seem like they went behind my back to make this decision while I was away. I check my emails for a reason, to stay on top of projects and to keep things in check. Thankfully most of the group was behind me in this one and not a lot of damage was done.

I ended the month with recovery from traveling to Guatemala as well as wrapping up the trip in several blog posts and a handful of photos and a video. This was not a PR trip as I didn’t want to feel pressured to produce something, but I wanted to practice a few techniques and skills in video and often use travel as a inspiration do to so.

I also began deeper work on my water quality project. I had ordered a small sketchbook and placed everything I have gathered about water quality in one place. From Masaru Emoto’s research on human consciousness affecting the molecules of water to my own water testing out here in western Massachusetts. I have started research and study on photographic sculptures because my hope is that the water quality project morphs into a photographic outcome that visually depicts the quality of water in a given body of water. I made color-coded vector graphics of the first water testing I did but then realized that particular body of water was on a private property where I am not living anymore. I now have to redo the testing on a more accessible body of water – perhaps somewhere close in Belchertown.

Additionally, I had also put out a call for a ghostwriter and met up with someone local. They had the interest and background education that I was looking for. We also seem to click on an interpersonal level which is important to me when collaborating and working with someone. I hope to have them be a constant contributor in the research department and put out monthly articles as well as help me with a book project. One of the things that is lacking in my career is the research side as I had to leave it for 3-4 years while I focused on the art and design. It’s time to return to that now.

Finally, I am now brushing up on my piano and instrumental skills 1-2 hours everyday. That, too, I had to put aside while I worked on the art and design and I am learning new pieces on the piano (and keyboard). I mastered Für Elise, Come Thou Font of Every Blessing, Simple Gifts and Amazing Grace in the span of the last several weeks. I would learn the melody and harmony and then arrange a piece for the keyboard with strings. I simply love playing the appropriate chords with the melodies and how closely it sounds to a real orchestra.

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