Fine Arts Career Services

As the first Friday of November approaches, we are preparing for The Blanton’s monthly Art Party “B scene”. B scene is a unique event at The Blanton. First of all, it takes place every month, so it is never far from our minds. It also spans the specific departments in the museum, so that almost every department– especially Education, Public Relations, Development, Volunteer and Visitor Services and Special Events– has to work together to make B scene a success. The community also gets involved through the huge numbers that attend and our large corps of volunteers who dedicate their time to helping us monitor the galleries and greet guests. B scene is also unique for its ever-changing program. Each month the party has a different theme with entertainment and activities to match, which can also attract different crowds. For example, the September B scene features Slam Poetry and different activities associated with poetry and art. Slam Poetry has a dedicated following and is an art form in itself, so we loved hosting all of the poets and their fans! Come to B scene this Friday at The Blanton from 6-10:30!!

Check out The Blanton’s website for more information on this month’s B scene! http://blantonmuseum.org/experience_the_blanton/b_scene/index.cfm

This past week provided a bit of a breather I think for my supervisor and the rest of the staff in the Art Department. Even though there are a few odds and ends that we need to work on, the first wave of the Big Move is over! The HRC’s objects and paintings are now safe as construction begins at the FAC.

Seeing as that project was mostly over (for me at least), my supervisor introduced me to a new project: translating information on a set of prints by Avraham Goldberg. The title, artist info, date, and introduction are all in Hebrew, which I can translate as I grew up speaking Hebrew, my father’s native language. Previously, at the HRC I volunteered by translating identifying information on Hebrew and Yiddish books, so this new project was sort of a deja vu experience as I sat leafing through my dictionary and slowly, but surely making headway!

During my first day with the prints, I felt fairly confident as the information presented  was straightforward and easy for me to translate. However I turned to the last page of the suite, and I saw a double sided introductory text. The two scholars who wrote the introduction did so in a sort of elevated academic Hebrew, which is much more advanced than my conversational skills. And so this part of the translation has taken me a few days, and will be an ongoing project. I have translated, with some gaps, most of the first section, and next week I will tackle the next. There are some words and phrases that are beyond both me and the dictionary, and I will definitely be calling up my father next week, bugging him for some answers (he doesn’t know this yet!).

I hope that in the future someone will find this translation helpful in their research. The artist, Avraham Goldberg, is not renown so much in the U.S., but in Israel he is more well known as an artist dealing with Jewish themes, something that many Jewish artists have tried to move beyond.

I enjoy projects that I know will take a few weeks to complete, so I don’t have to constantly be searching for small tasks to do. I come in in the morning, check in with my supervisor, and get to work! Feeling productive makes me feel like I am really contributing to the HRC.

S asked me to design her website better at the beginning of my internship.  I have never studied about websites, so I hesitated a little.  However, I told myself that I should take this opportunity to learn how to design a website instead of saying her that I cannot do it.  I think I have used enough hours of my time on internet to be able to tell which website is well designed and which one is not.  I told S that I need to research of architects and engineers’ websites to learn how to design a professional engineer’s website.  S taught me some good websites of certain architects and engineers, so I had a lot of fun doing a research about them.  Most of their websites were simple and not flashy like a fashion designer’s website.  After doing a research for some hours, I came up with some ideas, such as size of the logo, color and size of font and place of links to jump to other pages.  I sketched images of my ideas on papers to show her my ideas.

Every Monday, my boss, my co-worker (the other marketing intern), and I have a meeting to discuss what was accomplished during the week before and what tasks take priority in the coming week. We have two shows coming up in the next month that are very important in terms of marketing, so at our meeting my boss assigned us large projects to accomplish within the next few weeks. I’m very excited about mine because it involves a good community outreach program, but is still an important marketing strategy for one of our biggest shows – 101 Dalmatians: The Musical. My job will be to try to form partnerships with as many pet stores, dog rescue groups, shelters, and other similar establishments as possible. Apparently, 15 of the real dogs performing in the show were rescued from various shelters and pounds around the country. Many of them were injured, malnourished, or otherwise extremely unhealthy. The staff for the show nursed them back to health and gave them excellent living conditions, and then professional trainer Joel S. prepared them for the show. They are so gentle with the dogs, and are determined to find them permanent homes when the show’s tour is done. There will also be excerpts in each program to inform people of the gravity of the decision to get a dog, as well as information on adopting rescue animals.

I’m sure the rescue groups and shelters I talk to will be very excited. I’ve already emailed about thirty in Austin, and have at least twice that many left to contact. This show could really make a big impact on the animals in the community, and I am so glad I get to be a part of this effort.

You may be surprised to know that working in Special Events involves quite a bit more than glamorous parties and high profile events. A lot of prep work goes into the events themselves, of course, but there is an endless array seemingly minute background details that contribute to the overall support and function of museum events. Many of these tasks lay groundwork for future events, are important because they make sure our information is current, or they improve the department. These jobs are usually time consuming but are not urgent or vital to the success or fail of any specific event. Stephanie and Katy have so much on their plates with important and pressing responsibilities that a lot of my internship focuses on completing background research/tasks for them. Through this, I have the opportunity to see how many levels of work and how much accumulated knowledge goes into creating successful events. I think that one of the reasons that the Special Events department functions so well is because of this emphasis on building a strong foundation of supporting information.

I finished creating a list of potential new clients, and am now working on a list of restaurant recommendations to give to clients who are unfamiliar with Austin and want to go out to lunch or dinner. Writing all of the little blurbs about Austin’s best restaurants is fun and I am relishing the opportunity show my voice through my writing!

This past week I had a very unique experience as a result of my internship at DiverseArts. I attended the Liberal Arts Career and Internship Fair this past Wednesday as a recruiter for this unique non-profit organization. Harold and myself interviewed anywhere from a hundred to one hundred and fifty bright young individuals to fill internship positions for the next Spring and Summer semesters. As a soon to be graduate of the University of Texas it is interesting to be on the other side of the career table. Interviews are constructed to find the best fit for each position. Questions aim to determine logistic information such as the area of study in which students are most proficient, academic standings and how individuals might best serve the organization. After a successful campaign at the career fair, the business of sorting through all the resumes and emails received is delegated to me. I have initiated a system of filing to organize the responses from potential candidates. Skill that set an individual apart from the crowd includes professional conduct, organization, responsibility and the ability to promote your abilities. When a sea of resumes confronts employers, determination may be as important as experience. An essential key to landing advantageous vocational positions is following up. Seven applications have been submitted out of a hundred interviewees. Candidates stand out not only because of their accomplishments but because they have contacted us by email and have expressed continued interest. I believe this experience better prepares my own endeavors to fill job positions and proactively react during interviews and occupational assessments exercises. “Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing (Abraham Lincoln).”

In addition to planning for the future, DiverseArts is also addressing events and  programming to come in the remainder of the 2009 Fall season. I am currently initiating the final preparations for E.A.S.T. (East Austin Studio Tour), to take place the weekends of November 14^th – 15^th and 21^st - 22^nd. DiverseArts Culture Works will be hosting an artist market at Kenny Dorham’s Backyard and a new gallery show at New East Arts Gallery. There is a lot of development to be carried out in administrative areas. The non-profit is gearing up for the launch of a new and improved annual membership fundraiser and a reelection of the members of the board. I plan to attend a meeting this Thursday so I will be familiar with their conduct and the overall mission that drives this organization’s efforts.

This week at CAG I am filming an EPK. An EPK stands for electronic press kit, which is basically a resume for artists, or a preview for a movie. They are normally used when an upcoming artist it promoting their album when it is about to be released. What it entales is a biography, tour dates, photos, press releases, even a look into the songs that are going to be on the upcoming album. This week I am getting alot of stuff together to film this. I have an advertising major from the University of Texas helping me with this project. Ramy wanted me to work with the resources around me and network and so I found him to help me. We are filming on wednesday which should be so fun. This is really opening my eyes to understand that its not just about the music it takes alot of other elements to make this whole thing happen. I am defnitely learning the right skills to learn how this industry works.

I learned the image of photos or text can look different when I created my art portfolio, so I asked S to print out my business card for me before we bring it to the printer.  S gave me a hard copy of my business card next day.  Then I asked myself that does it look presentable, and do I like it?  The answer was “No! “  I told myself that I know you can make it to look better.  My assignment for this week was editing my business card.  I played with making a logo bigger, however I did not think Japanese text looked good in it because a big logo and Japanese font were fighting.  So I asked myself if I should take out Japanese text and make a logo bigger.  Well, I still wanted some Japanese text in my business card as my experiment.  I want to see how American may act on it when they saw some Japanese text in my business card.  I decided to take out my name in Japanese text, but I left the company name in Japanese.  It looked better, I thought.  Again, I asked S to print out my business card last night.

This week, the HRC staff saw the start of a much awaited event: The Big Move. My department has been planning this move for months now. Previous interns have worked on this before me, and I am, along with other interns, are continuing the effort to coordinate this move. With all the hype that preceded it, I was expecting utter confusion and mayhem. But it has been a surprisingly smooth and stress-free process (at least for me). I know that this is due to the careful planning that my supervisor and other have put into this project.

Monday, my supervisor and I oversaw the movers, and then we moved some art ourselves. I reshelved some things and found places for “homeless” works of art. I was on my feet the whole time, something I really enjoy as a nice change from all the sitting I do in class. Wednesday was a bit more relaxed, as I prepared labels for the artwork in one particular room. The labels act as an example of how well the HRC staff is handling this move. Everything is color coded and marked to show where the artwork came from and where it is going. Every detail has been considered. I am very impressed!

On Friday, I went with my supervisor to the FAC to help with the moving process again. We were going through a box of unidentified objects. I was curious and opened up one of the small cases, and I found a mezuza in it. A mezuza is a Jewish object meant to be placed on the door that also holds a scroll of holy texts. Finding it was completely unexpected as we were in a room filled with cowboy and horse motif inspired objects! I was able to identify the name and purpose of the object for the staff.

I worked on my business card this week.  Stephanie said that my business card can be creative.  It does not have to be formal, so I decided to use Japanese characters in my business card.  There were some limitations again, such as we only had one ink, and a few choices of printing papers.  Whenever I see limitations, I tell myself to challenge myself.  I should learn how to be creative in any kind of situation.

I have always wanted to take a class in typography.  I find it deep, complicated and interesting.  It has a lot of effect on human’s psychology.  Some fonts are easily read, but some are not.  Letters can give people sound not just reading letters.  Using Japanese and English letters together in my business card made me to think about visual and sound effects a lot.  First, I typed every information in English, then I decided which information to type in Japanese.  I decided to choose the name of the company and my name.  I made one Japanese word to be bold and arch because it looked like it had a roof, column and floor.  I picked that word to use it as a symbolic figure of a building.  Then I wondered how many people can see it as a symbolic figure of a building.  I really hope to take a typography class soon.