mel jacobson on fri 6 may 11
my former student ned showed up last week.
we had a great time together, talking and
thinking together about art.
i got ned into kc art inst...helped get ned into
yale for his mfa in art.
he traveled and work for dale eldred building
sculptures all over the world. have been his
dad/mentor for years. he was the famous
D student in high school. not a chance in the world
of success...hmmm, you want to bet?
ned lives in ny city. he is a wonderful artist.
does kinetic sort of art. but, he needed work,
and he is an amazing craftsman. welds as a pro,
can make anything. worked for a few years at
the `guthrie theatre as lead builder of sets.`
he is now supervisor of construction for one of
the biggest set companies in ny city. they make
all the big sets for tv/news/high tech, plus broadway
special sets/disney projects etc..
he is one busy fellow.
i asked him about young artists that they try to
hire. what does the new generation have to offer.
those that grew up in concept/performance.???
his take.
`i know now why people yell and get pissed in the
work place. most we hire don't last a week. they
cannot do nothing...just talk. you ask them to build
something...they stand like statues. you ask them
to weld a seam....they don't know how. finger up
their nose.
last week the unforgivable happened...a kid left a
hammer on top of a 8 foot step ladder...another young
women went to move the ladder and the hammer smacked
her on the head...hospital trip. THEY CANNOT DO
ANYTHING. i have hired at least 12 the last two years.
fire them weeks later. no skill...just talk.`
his solution: he is now only hiring women. they learn
on the job, will tackle anything...have a desire and
need to accomplish things. they take on anything.
but, they must be trained. like he said...`i spend most
of my day teaching mfa students how to use a hammer
and a wrench.`
ned wants to hire artists, give them a start, but it is
totally frustrating. no training. just concept.
and he said...`how the hell can you make a living
with `concept`, there is no product, nothing to make
a living with.` and, many of these young folks have
a college loan package of $100,000. that would be:
$900+ a month, for 16 years. do the math.
so many come out with ego's as big as barns.
they are going to turn the world of art over in
a few years...they just need to be discovered.
hmmm, won't happen too often. some make it,
but it is like being a movie star...1 in 10,000.
well, a real life story. no theory. just his take,
my take. i sure would not be jealous over being
a concept artist. i have not spent 5 minutes of my
life wondering about my future...just keep my head
down, keep working. things really take care of
themselves when you work all the time...learn all
the time, study all the time. makes for a good
life.
mel
from: minnetonka, mn
website: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/
clayart link: http://www.visi.com/~melpots/clayart.html
new book: http://www.21stcenturykilns.com
alternate: melpots7575@gmail.com
Marcia Selsor on fri 6 may 11
Mel,
I appreciate what your former student was saying.
I always appreciated teaching Montana ranch kids. They could do =3D
anything. If you live 50 or 100 miles from a hardware store, you learn =3D
to fix things. Great problem solvers. Also conscientious hard workers.
Marcia
Marcia Selsor
http://www.marciaselsor.com
http://ceramicartsdaily.org/potters-council/ceramics-in-tuscany/
| |
|
