Less thinking, more doing!

I'm currently completing a Certificate in 3D Design at the wonderfully inspiring Emily Carr University of Art & Design.The school is situated on Granville Island, which is not an island at all, but a peninsula, filled with artisan's stores, art galleries, a public market with locally grown veggies, terrific restaurants and basically everything and anything one could need to fill a whole day of "touristy" activities. I believe Granville Island is a good example of what the architect, Matthew Frederick calls "Denial and Reward" in which the built environment presents the user (that's you) "a view of their target - a staircase, building entrance, monument or other element - then momentarily screen it from view as they continue their approach. Reveal the target a second time from a different angle or with a interesting new detail. Divert users onto an unexpected path to create additional intrigue or even momentary lostness; then reward them with other interesting experiences or other views of their target."  Granville Island is very much like this, creating a playful place to wander and discover no matter what your age.

But I digress...I was writing about art school.

The building complex of Emily Carr University of Art & Design is built by Patkau Architects. Concrete, glass, and metal come together to create a great space to work and be creative in. There's a bit of the "Denial and Reward" concept in the building's design. Hallways lead to balconies overlooking open spaces. From the library you can see the South building. Interior windows gives you a view into workshops and tool sheds down below.  The main entrance gallery space is constantly changing, keeping you engaged every time you enter the school.  My current class, "The Business of Art Practice" lead by Chris Tyrell was the push I needed to get a blog started and actually produce, not just think. As inspiring as the Emily Carr building may be, thinking can only get you so far. For months I've been thinking, conspiring, pondering, wondering, dreaming...

Snap out of it: Less thinking, more doing! Who would've thought less thinking was a good thing?

The class, in a nutshell, is about how to turn your art into your career.  And who better to teach this than Chris Tyrell? Author of Artist Survival Skills and the upcoming Making It, Chris knows what he's talking about. (On a side note, Chris is about to embark on a walk from Paris to Montpellier. Yes, that's right, he's walking the entire way.  Talk about less thinking, more doing! To read more about this fantastic adventure, go here). So, as I was saying, of course not all 25 students will have the same life goals but Chris manages to weave in and out of topics that pertain to us all. Everything is covered, from taxes to entering galleries, to writing grants and applying to artists' residencies. Marketing, promotion, artists' health, insurance, sales, financial growth (or lack there of), it's all covered. After just the second class I got my groove in gear. There was no Step 1, Step 2 type of procedure but I felt that I could sit still no longer. I bought 20m of "shoe canvas", 160m twill tape, new needles, 3 new large frames, paint, a large squeegee, a bucket of emulsion and a great pair of fabric scissors. 

My plan was to make aprons. Many aprons. Mass-production. And by "mass" I mean a whopping seventy-six aprons! That's a lot considering the most I've ever made is five. I like the idea of aprons because it's a tool. I mean, who wears an apron unless it's because you're cooking or crafting or painting, etc? So, it kept in line with my "functional" design concept.
Will I succeed and turn my art into my career? Well, first I need to stop giggling when I say "my art". People make a living doing the strangest things, so why not screen printing on aprons? At this point, whether I succeed or not is secondary as I have already succeeded at one thing: I am giving it a shot. I jumped right into all of it and so far it's been great fun. If the world revolved around me, which, much to my dismay I discovered a few years ago that it does not, but if it did, then I would screen print aprons and pillows for babies and their parents, messenger bags and totes for bikers and tea cozies for grandmas and other wonderful creations and I would be content with "my art".