The DOs and DON'Ts of Finding a Job: Cover Letters

Most organizations look at hundreds of applicants for any position posted. It is integral to write a cover letter that not only showcases your strengths and skills, but demonstrates your knowledge of the organization that you are applying to, connects your skills to the skills needed in the position, and has an anecdote that is memorable. It is essential to target every cover letter to the position and organization that you are applying to.

Tip: If your cover letter can be used to apply to multiple positions, you won't be getting a phone call.

With just one page to fit all of that into, it sounds impossible. Writing cover letters is a time consuming practice,  but the more you do it, the better you will be!

A good cover letter will:

1) Look professional: Make sure all of your personal information is laid out at the top of the page, and the layout matches your resume. Use a professional font. Make sure your margins are a normal size (margins that are way too big or too small make your cover letter look unprofessional at first glance).

2) Address the right person: If a name is given to apply to, absolutely, 100% address the letter to that person. If the position has not listed a name, do some research. Go on their website or Linked In to see if you can find the name of the hiring manager. Addressing the correct person demonstrates that you are professional and that you pay attention to detail. If you absolutely cannot find it, whatever you do, do NOT open the letter with Dear Sir. Remember, it is very possible that the person doing the hiring can also be a woman. People do not appreciate the assumption that a manager would be a man.

3) Start off your cover letter with a story that shows who you are: Of course, you may want to start with your education or work experience. But try to express yourself in the first few sentences, you want to grab their attention so they will keep reading the letter. Reading letter after letter about people's skills and abilities gets boring, you want to be the one that sticks out.

An anecdote about why you would love to work at that organization would be great to use. Here are a few examples:

"In my current position I had the opportunity to mentor students who were applying to jobs, and I realized that I really loved this aspect of the position. I enjoyed working directly with students to determine their skills and interests and to help them leverage those skills to start their career. When I saw the Human Resources position posted, I felt that this position would be a great opportunity to continue with my passion for working with people while using the skills that I have developed in my current role".

"As a person who has spent some time volunteering with non-profit organizations that support aboriginal people, I have seen first-hand how the lack of resources for aboriginal people in our country affects their quality of life. I firmly believe that it is our responsibility as a country to provide resources such as health care, community resources, and support to aboriginal people so that they have the opportunities that others have. I believe these values are in line with those of your organization, and I would love the opportunity to help provide this support in the fundraising role that has been posted".

4) Showcase your skills in a memorable way: Don't just list your skills. Anyone can list skills. I have seen countless people claim that they are detail-oriented, but their resume is littered with spelling mistakes and doesn't even address the person listed in the job posting. Just saying you have skills doesn't mean anything to a potential employer.

What you need to do is give examples of skills that you have and then tell them how you got those skills. Not where, HOW. Give a story of something you did to develop those skills, talk about a report you had to write, or a project you worked on. Make it memorable. Here are a few examples:

"I developed strong cross-cultural communication skills while working at the Banquet Centre. While I was a server at the Banquet Centre, we served wedding receptions for people from a variety of backgrounds. During these events I had to adjust to the cultural norms and traditions associated with wedding receptions. I also had to adjust to the way people interacted with me and understand that not every culture would address me the same way. This experience has given me the ability to react quickly to different cross-cultural situations so as to provide the best customer service possible".

"I developed international business skills while writing solutions to business cases in my courses at University X. One such business case that we studied was for Wal-Mart when they entered the market in China. When Wal-Mart entered the Chinese market, they were very unsuccessful due to a variety of cultural differences that they had not considered. Chinese customers rarely have vehicles, therefore they do not buy in bulk to get the savings that Wal-Mart provides. Shoplifting was also a serious problem at the locations in China. One of the solutions that I had developed for this case was to focus heavily on e-commerce, which would be delivered to the doors of customers. This was a solution that no one else in the class had thought of, and turned out to be one of the directions that Wal-Mart had taken to find success in China".

5) Do your research: Do your research on the company! Show that you love the company. Show that you are not just looking for a job, you are looking for a job with THEM. That is so important, as any organization wants someone who will be passionate about their mission and vision.

Simply copying and pasting the mission or vision of the organization into your cover letter will not cut it, either. They know what their mission and vision is, don't spit it back out at them. Read through the company website as thoroughly as possible, but don't stop there. Look for news articles on that company to make sure you understand what is happening for them right now. Look at their Linked In page, and research what is happening in their industry. Here are some examples:

"I read recently that CompanyX has received funding to expand and build a new location. I would love to work for CompanyX as I think this is a very exciting time to be involved with the growing organization that supports people in the arts. I strongly believe that people in the arts need space and support to grow their careers, and being a part of that growing initiative is an amazing opportunity".

"I understand that not-for-profit organizations face a different set of challenges that private organizations do not. Your budget demonstrates that government funding has been cut for your organization recently, and that you rely more heavily on fundraising to provide the support needed. I believe that all homeless people deserve housing as well as community support, therefore I would love to be a part of your fundraising department to ensure that as many homeless people in our city can get that support as possible".

6) Link your skills to what the organization needs: So now you've shown yourself, you've shown that you know the company, link those two things to really hit home. Sure you have skills, and you like the organization, but why should they choose you over someone else? Plenty of people have skills needed for the position you are applying for. Why are you their choice?

"The communication skills that I have developed over my work experience would be an asset in this position while interacting with potential donors. With my passion for this initiative, I could clearly communicate it's importance to the community so potential donors have a good understanding of what they are supporting and how it will have a positive influence. This skill paired with the financial skills that I developed in my education would create a smooth process for acquiring new donors and processing the transactions".

7) Proofread, proofread, proofread! Don't do what Tim Smith did. I see this over and over, people use cover letters that they used for other positions and forget to take the name of the other employer out. Nothing shows that you could care less about the position than that. Also, it shows that you do not pay attention to detail. Those are the biggest things that send your cover letter to the garbage, when employers are looking at hundreds of applications, small things like that just give them a quick and easy reason to cut the pile down.

The same goes for spelling mistakes. Read it over multiple times, check the spelling and grammar, do not rely on Microsoft Word to pick up all of your mistakes, and get another set of eyes to read it over for you. Read your letter out loud a few times to make sure that it sounds the way you want it to. Rework your bulky sentences. If you have time, sleep on it for a night and come back and look at it with fresh eyes in the morning. This attention to detail will keep you in the maybe pile, and will ensure your cover letter is read from beginning to end.



.... I know. It's a lot of work. Which can be frustrating when you apply for job after job and never seem to hear back from anyone. However, carefully crafting your cover letter will make you stick out from the rest of the applicants and will give you a fighting chance. Use this method, and you will be writing master cover letters faster and faster each time you do it. Eventually you will get that call! And when you do, I will have tips and tricks to help you with your interview!

The DOs and DON'Ts of Finding a Job

In my current job, I connect students with employers and organize networking events, job postings, and interviews. I thought I would start sharing some of the job hunting knowledge that I've been accumulating in this process. So for the next few weeks, you will be seeing the dos and don'ts of finding a job! So for this week:

Networking

So if you're like me, networking at events with strangers that are much further in their career than you are is absolutely excruciating. I have many times been guilty of going to networking events and not speaking to anyone. I have actually been advised to take leadership classes, which I do plan to do in the future.

However, simply showing up at networking events isn't going to do anything for you. You need to talk to people and make connections, as 80% of jobs are not advertised. Therefore, all of the jobs you see posted are only 20% of the jobs out there. The more connections you make and mentors you gather, the more likely someone will connect you with someone that is hiring or recommend you for a position!

Then how do we get over this networking anxiety? If you're like me, when you do get the courage to talk to someone, you are also painfully awkward. Well have no fear, there is a solution. Practice. Reflect. And repeat!

Practice
Go to an event and force yourself to speak to someone. At least one person. Start small if you have to.

Reflect
After the event, reflect on the conversation and the interaction. What made you so nervous? Did the other person react in any way? Did everything go okay? Did anything bad happen because you talked to this person?

Repeat
Go out there and try it again! Make yourself goals. Talk to two people, approach someone when you're by yourself, try to sell yourself, use your elevator speech. As you continue reflecting upon these interactions, you will realize that some of your anxieties are in your head, and that nothing bad happens when you fight them and get yourself out there. Practice will make you better at it, and reflecting will make you more comfortable.

So get out there, go to any events possible, and network! I know I know, but you don't have the time. Make the time. Networking is one of the best things you can do for your career, and it will not be successful unless you practice it!

Ethical decision-making

Everyone likes to think they act ethically. People aren't inherently evil, they just find ways to justify their actions to themselves. This makes the matter of ethics confusing, whether referring to it on a personal level or on an organizational level.

There is push these days for organizations to act ethically, but what defines ethical decision-making is not black and white nor cut and dry. It is instead a sliding scale, ranging from not-for-profits whose entire reason for existence is for the greater good, to organizations that participate in corporate social responsibility to appease consumers and to try and give back to the community, to organizations that push every limit and act fraudulently and corruptly to make as much profit for shareholders as possible, and everything in between. There is no answer to ethical decision-making, but it is important to remember that the closer we get to unethical decision-making, the easier it is to justify to ourselves taking it one step further.

This is a visual representation that I made for a business case dealing with ethical decision-making. It is important to remember that all of our decisions exist on an ethical sliding scale, and that we must ensure that our decisions do not begin sliding to the unethical direction. We must also value ethical decision-making as a high standard for organizations as consumers. By being aware of how ethical our actions are, we can make the world a better place.

Professionalism

Professionalism is just as important in the art field as it is in any other type of business. The way you portray yourself is very important, and while the image of an artist as a disheveled eccentric is attractive in theory, portraying yourself as professional leaves the impression of a trustworthy individual in the minds of others. This is essential when people are considering purchasing your artwork, when they are trusting that you will follow through on a commission, or when someone is trusting that you will have a body of work prepared for a gallery showing in time. If someone has a sense that you are well-managed and put together, they will be more likely to give you these opportunities.

A good friend once said to me: dress for the job that you want, not the job that you have. For years I believed that being an artist meant that I could play by my own rules and avoid the standards that everyone else would have to live their mundane lives by. However, when my friend said these words to me,  I was working for minimum wage in a mundane office, unemployable as an artist, and those words really stuck with me. I realized that getting ahead as an artist would take more than talent, hard work, and good ideas. It would also require me to present myself as someone that is put together. And despite the fact that I wanted to be acknowledged as a working artist, I began feeling as though the job that I wanted as a working artist was not one as a disheveled eccentric who was obsessive of all things art, but one as a professional looking artist who is successful at their business.

I began dressing more professionally at my job, I purchased a few blazers and always tried to look nice. However, when I started business school I never thought that I would fit in. I never felt that my attire would ever be up to snuff, and I always had difficulty looking truly professional. As time went by and I gathered more business attire (might I add, at no cost more than I was buying regular clothes for the most part), I realized that it's not that difficult, and that anyone can dress professional with a reasonable amount of comfort as well.

Can't wear a pair of pantyhose without a starting a huge run in it? Buy some damn dress pants. Break my face on the bus with high heels? Payless has plenty of flat shoes, don't worry. Can't find a button up shirt that doesn't look like the buttons at the boobs are hanging on for dear life? Well, there are plenty of nice shirts without buttons.

Another thing I learned years ago is that your art should look professional as well. Now, mind you, I am not saying to change your art style. If you art style is a mess, let it be a mess! However, there is something very important one of my professors during my Visual Arts degree taught me. I was working on a book project for a printmaking class, and I had printed and bound a book. Now, I was never very good at precise detailed work, but I wanted to make a nice-looking book like the ones I had seen made in workshops I had attended. But instead the inside cover of my book had glue all over it and the pages were all a bit crooked. My professor for that class, when critiquing my book, told me one something that has stuck with me ever since. She said "Lenore, your artwork is very messy. That isn't a bad thing, it's the type of artwork that you make and it's who you are. But you have to embrace it and to always make sure that if it looks messy, it looks messy on purpose".

That has stayed with me to this day. My messy disheveled artwork was suddenly no longer something I struggled with, but instead became something I could be proud of. I stopped trying to make neat artwork, and instead put my efforts into making sure the messy work I was making was presented properly. My artwork remained messy while the presentation changed.

It took me years to realize that this practice was important for myself as well. I could remain a messy person, who is all over the place, constantly busy, constantly have a million ideas running through my head, working on a variety of projects, as long as I presented myself in my dress pants, nice shoes (no heels) and nice shirt (no buttons) so I looked like I was being a messy person on purpose.

Have any tips on professionalism as an artist? I'd love to hear it! Comment below!

<3 Lenore

Love art every day

As I said a few posts ago, when I spoke about how I keep focused on art while I am busy, I often try to make whatever small doodles and drawings I can to keep myself involved. Here's a quick little doodle I did on my iPad. Thought I'd share as a reminder to you all to love art every day.

<3 Lenore

The struggles of a Fine Arts graduate

When I finished my Visual Arts degree, I was very unsure of what to do next. If there is one thing I've learned after completing a university education, it is that the focus of university is on academia and knowledge, and what you do with it when you're finished is of no concern to them. This is unfortunate, however, because many students are never taught the skills to get the job, or to even know what job they are qualified for. There is something that I find very frustrating about programs that charge such large sums of money and put teenagers in insurmountable debt despite holding the firm belief that there is no place there to teach usable real life skills in the field.

While I was studying Visual Arts, I spent the entire four years feeling as if I had myself all figured out. "I am soooo lucky that I know what I'm passionate about and what I want to do for the rest of my life straight out of high school", said my brain while dragging my tired ass to class every day.

However, things were very different after I was out of school. I was left with this wandering sense of "now what?". I had to find somewhere to live, money to pay rent, and no one was showing up at my door offering me money to live as an artist.

So what did I do?! Well I did what many artists do at that point in their career! I started working at a call centre. (Other acceptable answers here would have been gas station, restaurant, or retail outlet).

It's a sad truth: since the recession it has become extremely difficult to be an artist. I don't understand how art schools can stay afloat if they do not begin teaching students the skills to survive after art school. You see, no matter how passionate you are about something, you still need to eat and pay rent. No matter how passionate I was about art, I had to work 40 hours a week at a call centre. There have been several points in my life where I've had to work two jobs, up to 60 hours a week, just to afford the cost of living. Finding the time to make art on top of that is difficult. Finding the time to network yourself or to sell your art on top of that is near impossible.

Here is a great Maclean's article about how difficult it is to be a Fine Arts graduate right now, and how schools have to adapt.

Students need to start these processes while still in school. Students need to start gaining the business skills (networking, marketing, financial skills, etc) while still in art school, because they will never find the time to learn these on their own. Instead, they end up in dead end jobs with piles of half-finished and finished canvases in their bedroom that no one will see because they don't know how to get someone to look, while busting their asses to pay off their debts.

Now that I'm enrolled in an MBA, I feel like I am gaining the necessary skills to be a working artist. If that doesn't work out, I have the skills to find a job that will pay me enough that I can at least have the time to get my art out there. However, I was never made aware that applying for an MBA was an option for me as a Visual Arts graduate. It took me four years the figure that out. Nor did I think for a second to enroll in business electives during my undergrad. Why did no one tell me these things?! Why have I suffered this whole time?

I think one of the issues is that the professors teaching these programs never faced the problems that we do. When they finished school there was grant money available, there were teaching jobs, they didn't have to choose between making art and eating. However, I sincerely feel that they should look around them and see what is occurring to students after they walk out of the school doors. They need to adapt, or there will be no room for art school and no room for art in the lives of the upcoming generation.

How I stay focused on art when I am very busy

I have been busy and while enrolled in an MBA and my life has been very business-focused, so I try whenever possible to keep art in my mind. Even when I do not have the time to make art, I try to keep inspired in the little free time that I have. In an attempt to remind myself that the purpose that I am attending business school is for the business of art, because art is my real passion. Truly, I would like to integrate business and art together in my life. When I first finished art school and was attempting to figure out what to do, I found few resources relating business and art or addressing the business side of art. I think I would like to communicate the business skills from my MBA to other artists, to help them as well.

This summer has been hectic for me, but here are some of the ways I have been keeping art in my head.

1. Reading about art. 

 

Art & Physics: Parallel Vision in Space, Time and Light

by Leonard Shlain

I feel that reading about art really keeps me focused. The work of other artists can be really inspiring, and get you motivated and excited to express your own thoughts and ideas. I often like to read about art from different viewpoints, and I have always taken great interest with physics, so I picked up this book. I take many issues with this book, the author many time forces his theory and I feel he also manipulates the concept of some of the artwork to mean what he wants it to mean. Also, the author often leaves out important advances in physics in the book because they do not contribute to his theory. However, at 437 pages I think this book is a great overview of art and physics and I enjoyed the ability to compare the timeline of the two together. If nothing else, Shlain demonstrates how changes often occur in both fields at the same time because of the shift of perspective of everyone in society. I also enjoyed having the inspiration that comes with reading about many of my favourite artists again, and sometimes getting perspectives on their artwork that I hadn't been exposed to before. 

2. Listening to podcasts

I have the luck of working from home for my internship, so when I am doing more visual work (formatting documents, etc) I can listen to podcasts. One of the few great resources I have found for business and art is Alyson Stanfield's blog and podcasts. Her website, http://artbizcoach.com, has some great resources and if you search for her podcasts, she has a ton that covers all of the topics you could imagine encountering as an artist. It keeps me motivated and informed. 

3. Drawing and painting small things

I don't have the time to work on big paintings, therefore I try to do small sketches and small paintings whenever possible. Even if the paintings have no conceptual meaning to me, sometimes it's just nice to have a tool in my hand and move a medium around on a surface. Here is a small painting I did this summer (unfinished at this point, some shoulders went in later). 

Self-portrait

Acrylic on canvas

The fight of my life since I finished my Bachelor of Fine Arts has been finding the time to keep up with my artwork. I do not come from a family that can support me while I don't work, and it is difficult to find a good paying job these days. I keep reminding myself that I am doing an MBA to free up more time and have access to more resources when I do find a good job, and using these techniques to keep myself focused on art helps me along the way.

<3 Lenore

Fake it 'til you are it.

The jump from art to business has been very interesting for me. I often get reactions from both professors and people I am networking with when I tell them that my background is a Visual Arts degree. It's rather unexpected, and sometimes I wonder if there have been people who didn't think I could survive business school. I am surviving. And it is changing me. But I think that because I have been so focused on learning, that I haven't noticed how much. However, there are moments when it really hits me.

For example, the other day I was sitting in class thinking about how I should pick up a copy of the book Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul. I had remembered seeing it in all of the Starbucks locations when it came out. The first person perspective on the life of Starbucks would be really interesting. Then I sighed thinking, I'll never find the time to read it with all of the schoolwork I have right now.

Then I realized something. When the book first came out and I saw it in all of the Starbucks locations, I remember rolling my eyes. Another marketing gimmick, I thought at the time, who would buy into that? Yet here I was, years later, feeling distraught over the fact that I did not have enough free time to read this book about a business while in business school.

Today I went to see my career adviser to do a mock interview and discuss my internship prospects. We discussed the cover letters I have submitted, as well the answers I had prepared for my interviews. She said to me that she is not worried about me getting a position because I have great interview answers and that I am really learning how to communicate with business language. She said she was very impressed with me.

Who am I? I thought. When I first moved to Ontario it was rough for me, I felt very out of place. Things are different here, people are less brash and more professional. And colder. I had to learn to be less forward and communicate accordingly. Three years ago, in peasant skirts and hoodies, I moved here feeling like I would never belong.

Eventually I became comfortable here, dressed a bit better, began communicating differently, and made a good pocket of friends. Then I joined business school and all of those feelings began all over again. I'm a Fine Arts graduate, who let me into business school? I can't wear business attire without getting a run in my pantyhose and scuffing up my shoes, who is ever going to believe me as a business person? There were many periods in my 20's where I have felt like I was mutt in a dog show, just waiting to be found out. Yet, I haven't been called out yet. If anything, I am becoming more successful every day.

A few months ago I watched a TED talk that really expressed how I've been feeling the last few years. It's by Amy Cuddy and it is called "Your body language shapes who you are". It is about how your own body language can affect you psychologically. However, the importance of body language is not what I took away from the talk. Near the end Amy Cuddy spoke of her life, and how after getting in a car accident her intelligence had been affected. She eventually managed to get into university, but was struggling with it immensely. She spoke to a professor about it and told them "I don't belong here". That's a feeling I have felt a thousand times.

Amy Cuddy says, don't fake it until you make it, fake it until you are it.  Fake it until someday you become that thing. Someday when you are it you will have a moment when you realize how much you've changed. You'll realize that you aren't faking it anymore. You'll realize that you didn't even notice when that happened. You'll realize that you belong.

Amy Cuddy - Your body language shapes who you are

If you can find the time, I highly suggest watching this TED talk. From someone who is faking it until they are it, who feels so out of place constantly, who wants so badly to succeed and express my talents and capabilities to the world, it will inspire you. Also, keep your mind open. Things that may not seem interesting to you may someday become another passion of yours. And perhaps, saying that the program has changed me isn't appropriate. Rather, it has helped me grow.

<3 Lenore

Business and Art

I have been rather silent because I have been working endlessly in the MBA program at Carleton. I am soon entering the winter semester, and I must say I am enjoying it. It is extreme amounts of work, but I am learning essential skills that are readily applicable to the real world.

As a Fine Arts graduate, I thought that I would find the business material dry or difficult. However, if there is one thing that I have learned from taking on this program it is that my thirst for knowledge applies to all facets of knowledge. I thoroughly enjoy learning information and applying it. I enjoy communicating, whether it be through visual means or through writing. I believe that no matter what career path I take that I will find it satisfying as long as there is a challenge and that I can apply my capabilities.

In other news, I will be exhibiting two paintings at the Carleton University art gallery, who is having a show that is open to all Carleton students. I just varnished them and prepared them for hanging. Here is the Signal Hill painting I had been working on previously, varnished and completed.

"Signal Hill"

Oil on Canvas

Unfortunately I have not been making any new art at all since I have started the program, I was unable to receive any funding and have been working while attending school to support myself. I miss making art. The anniversary of Sierra's death has came and went and I itched to express the emotions that have been rolling around inside of me. It will have to wait for the time being. I am hoping that all of the things that I accomplish when I finish this program will allow me more free time and money so that I can focus on art in my spare time. 

I wish you all the best, hope you had a wonderful holiday season and a happy New Year. I will try to update soon with some interesting business news and opinions. 

<3 Lenore

Henry Moore

I have been extremely busy. I have been accepted to Carleton University for September to do an MBA! So along with being generally more employable, I will be able to use the knowledge from my MBA in my art practice; to network and market myself and have business skills necessary to succeed.


In the meantime art has been in my thoughts lately. I went to Toronto for a weekend and visited the Art Gallery of Ontario. I hadn't realized that the biggest Henry Moore collection in the world is there.

'The Archer' by Henry Moore

City Hall, Toronto

I went to see Henry Moore's studio's in England in 2008 and was completely taken by his work. Despite having a keychain from there that I look at every day, I hadn't thought about his work in years. Walking through his works in the Art Gallery of Ontario, and even moreso discovering his work about the city, I once again was astonished by his use of form and space that had originally grabbed my attention years ago.

When I returned to Ottawa I listened to this Henry Moore documentary at work.

If you can possibly find an hour of your life to listen to some of the most sincere explanations an artist can give to their own work, watch this video. 

He led me to many thoughts about art. Some time ago I had given up drawing with the idea that a drawing is not generally an exhibitable piece of work and therefore has no value and is a waste of time. In this documentary Henry Moore describes drawing: 

"I think drawing, even for people who cannot draw, even for people not trying to produce a good drawing, it makes you look more intensely at whatever you are trying to draw... Just looking alone has no grit in it. Has no sort of mental struggle or difficulty. That only happens while you are drawing."

After this I went out and bought a sketchbook and paint markers. I have been drawing feverishly, looking at things more closely. And that is beginning to evolve to notes and ideas and sketches of potential paintings and objects that repeat themselves in my life. 

I have since been listening to more artist documentaries at work. In all of them I am finding inspiration, albeit some more than others. But at home I find time to sketch or at least lay down some words most nights. And with that the ideas in my head are constantly rolling. I am thinking about presence and absence and negative space and the apollonian and dionysian and form and things that I once used to roll over and over in my head but have since dissipated from my busy life. 

You never know what little thing will spark that love of art in you all over again. I've lost it and found it again so many times. I hope I never lose that spark, and there will always be Henry Moore's in my life to bring it back. 

<3 Lenore

Home

Here is an iPad sketch I did thinkin' about my next painting. I don't know how clear it is but the red is the ocean and the grey is beach rocks.

It is symbolic of course of my friend that passed away. But also of life in Newfoundland. I miss the ocean and I miss my home but standing on those rocks sometimes you can feel all of the sadness and destruction that place can bring you. I will forever be attached to it and never escape it no matter how far away I move. It is a part of me and I am a part of it.

You can always go home but you can never leave.

<3Lenore

Grief

I borrowed my brother's camera to take some better quality photos of my artwork to create a good portfolio and begin approaching some galleries. Check out the new photos at my updated artist website! LenoreGale.com

Here is a painting I finished some time ago. I was unsure of it and am still unsure of it. I considered painting over it but a friend of mine told me he would be very sad if I did.

 

Untitled

Acrylic on canvas

I need to pick up some new canvases and some phthalo blue (the best blue - I go through that stuff like nothin' else). I am unsure what to be painting next but I do know I have more painting to do.

Painting is still one of the few things I enjoy doing. My grief is changing. I thought it would be over by now. Sometimes I feel like it is, but it in fact has become less apparent, still hidden deep within me somewhere. My moods are erratic, I don't enjoy things that I used to and I am a bit of a shut in. I worked for years to become a very happy and positive person no matter how stressful my life became but I feel like that is fading away. I am a different person from three months ago. But things are improving. Day by day I am returning to some normal semblance of a human being. The good weather is helping. I am hoping by summer I will be mostly repaired.

At least I have painting to soothe me. I just hope that the sadness and the art are not synonymous, that my art can exist without the sadness. Only time will tell, but I will not stop trying.

<3Lenore

I am a mess.

I came home tonight from work after a 15 hour shift on two hours of sleep. I have been belligerently exhausted for most of the evening and my plan was to go to sleep. I put on Sleigh Bells and with the music and the exhaustion an overwhelming urge to paint without boundaries came over me.

I rarely paint abstract anymore. I have tried to keep my work conceptual in the last few years, and though the portraits I have been making are not conceptual per say they are to me and follow a form as well.

I didn't even make the conscious decision to paint this. This painting made me paint it.  In an almost manic-like state this came out of me in an hour and I have absolutely no idea where it came from.

 I am a mess.
Acrylic on canvas
20"x20"

My life as of late has been personal issue after personal issue. I have been a mess. I think something in me just snapped. All the messiness and sadness in my life and the lives of the people closest to me had taken it's toll. And I am very pleased with the result.

Will I paint more abstract? I doubt it. Perhaps if I have more to get out suddenly. We shall see.

<3 Lenore

Painting updates

I am still painting. This one is yet untitled, I finished it last night. I was getting tired of portraits. While they were expressing something very specific that I needed to get out, for me personally portraits are far from the artistic expression I am trying to reach. So this is my most recent painting:

Acrylic
20"x20"

Now to update you on some past works. This one is part of the blue series it was finished some time ago.

Phony
Acrylic

And this last one I posted before, but I took a better picture and cropped it. It is also part of the blue series.

Liar
Acrylic

There are more which I will update in the future. I am going to try revisiting my artist statement soon and updating my website so I can create a portfolio and hit up some galleries.

The other day my roommate told me I need to stop painting my dead friend. I have six paintings with her in them now. We'll see. If it's working it's working, right?

<3 Lenore

Tuesdays.

I hate Tuesdays now. It happened on a Tuesday.

It's been eight weeks. It still hurts, but I try to move on. Maybe not move on. Keep going. Keep my head above water. I'm more accepting of keeping my life in motion, whereas before I wanted everything to stop because I didn't want to let her go.

I have made a few, but here is one of the most recent paintings I've made of her.

Acrylic on canvas.

This one looks the most like her. I also like it because it's ghostly.

So here I am trying to pick up the pieces.

<3 Lenore

Kurt Vonnegut expresses in words how I express myself with paint

I can't stop painting her. It's become obsessive, in this same blue/brown mix that I can't put down. Since I returned from Newfoundland 17 days ago there is literally not a day that has passed that I haven't sat down with a paintbrush and painted. I can't sleep without doing so. And due to the fact that I only had a mere 20 minutes of painting before bed last night I could not sleep for ages and was haunted by nightmares of her when sleep did come.
There is a quote from Kurt Vonnegut, my favorite author when I was coming of age (and one of my favorites to this day) that has stuck with me for ten years:

"For my own part, though: It would have been catastrophe if I had forgotten my sister at once. I had never told her so, but she was the person I had always written for. She was the secret of whatever artistic unity I had ever achieved. She was the secret of my technique. Any creation which has any wholeness and harmoniousness, I suspect, was made by an artist or inventor with an audience of one in mind.
Yes, and she was nice enough, or Nature was nice enough, to allow me to feel her presence for a number of years after she died—to let me go on writing for her. But then she began to fade away, perhaps because she had more important business elsewhere.” 

-Kurt Vonnegut, Slapstick

This stuck with me because at the time I was certainly making art for someone and hadn't realized it until I read that. I made art for that person for years. And then there came a time that I had no one to make art for anymore. And everything became stagnant and I lost my motivation for art.

Before she passed away she had written me out a Christmas card but had not put it in the mail. My other friend sent it to me upon finding it amongst her things. It was like words from beyond the grave, hearing from a ghost.

There were several things in that card that will haunt me but one thing will stick with me the most. She said "I love the new painting you posted. YOU NEED TO PAINT MORE."

And now suddenly I have someone to paint for again. Everything else seems trivial. Like Vonnegut said I feel her presence even after she's gone. And I cannot stop painting her, feeling her, trying to express that there is something behind those eyes that we could never understand and apparently didn't even see.

And here she is. The second in my still untitled obsessive series in the Blue period of my life.

 

May you all always have someone to create for. And may they always be alive and well.

<3 Lenore

New painting

I told you I couldn't put down a paintbrush. Here is a painting of my friend who passed away. And the blue period is certainly working out for me.

This is done in acrylic. It doesn't look exactly like her (the eyes are too big) but I think it expresses what I wanted to express, which is what is most important.

More to come!

<3 Lenore

Blue Period

So I'm going to talk about something I wouldn't normally on a public blog. But it is difficult for me to discuss my art currently without talking about it. And I guess, what I'm expressing in my art is going to show it more than anything.

One of my best friends of almost ten years recently committed suicide.

I went home for a week to spend time with my friends afterwards. Upon being home one of my friends told me that The Old Guitarist by Picasso was one of his favorite paintings.

The Old Guitarist 

Picasso

My first instinct was to promise to paint it for him when I returned. So upon returning to Ontario I began painting it. As I was painting it I started reading about it and discovered that Picasso painted it in his Blue Period, which he fell into after his friend committed suicide. I then painted it with all the sadness and grief I was feeling and love that was lost in my entire being. And I ended up with this:

Replica of The Old Guitarist

Lenore Gale

I am still shocked at what came out of me. I then decided that I would have a Blue Period of my own. Ever since I came back I have not been able to put down a paintbrush. It is the only thing that calms me. I haven't had to paint like this in years. 

I have started an original blue painting. It's already beautiful. I will post it as soon as I am done. 

I hope you all have been having a better time than I am. Always remember to tell your loved ones that you care. 

<3 Lenore

New discovery: Thermal paper

I have been using a new medium that I have fallen in love with: Thermal Paper. My roommate discovered it by accident and it has revived my creativity!

Thermal paper is what receipts and faxes are printed on. I enjoy it because it is often unpredictable. It reminds me of when I used to paint with watercolor (my first love) because you cannot totally control it and have to let the medium to some extent take you away.

I use heat to create images, therefore there are endless ways to use it. I love what the use of heat represents, for example creating art using a cigarette versus a hair straightener have different connotations. I have some ideas I am playing around with in my head with the use of this medium.

For an example, here is a piece I recently finished using thermal paper.

City

11"x15"

Thermal paper, acrylic, wood panel

I have more in the works and I will be updating you as I finish them! Meanwhile, have there been any great mediums you have discovered lately? 

<3 Lenore

1 Second Everyday

Today I stumbled upon this video which I think is absolutely amazing:

He records one second a day every day in his life for a year. This video has an amazing mixture of quirky moments spliced in with the perfect amount of every day boring life. At the end it gets sad, as someone is in the ICU and the shots start repeating almost exactly the same in the hospital.

I love how it expresses all of the small moments in life, and then when it hits the ICU all the excitement and enjoyment freezes and it comes almost to a standstill. My favorite part of it is the audio, the one second clips of empty audio are comforting. It makes me think of sitting back and reminiscing about a year gone by.

The guy who made this video quit his advertising job and took a year off, which is the year in which he made this video. (That's why his life seems fairly exciting). He is also currently developing an app that would allow anyone to do this, which I think is an awesome idea.

If you want to support and get the app, here is his Kickstarter website! Check it out.


<3 Lenore