by Asia Matos | Aug 14, 2013 | Art
Has your mother ever told you that the people you surround yourself with are the people you become? Or how about, “Don’t tease that kid, Billy. He may become your boss one day.” Well, my mom told me all of these things, but she communicated this ultimate idea of karmic interaction in a slightly different way and for a slightly different reason. When I was in high school, a boy was stabbed in the hallway by another high school kid. I was in ninth grade, and reflecting back on that incident, I can’t imagine how terrified my mom might have been – to know that her daughter had barely been in high school for three months and then violence breaks out not even two brick walls away from her. It’s true – the event was grave. I remember the sound of the helicopters swirling overhead and the rattle of the trailers outside. Everyone was scared and no one knew what was happening. We all thought someone was shot. After the event, details were released to the public and I remember talking to my mom about it. She said, “Now Asia – you be careful how you treat other people, because you have no idea what others are capable of and you have no idea who they will become.” It was like she was telling me to watch out for the potential Hannibal Lecters or Adam Lanzas or Tooth Fairys in my life. It was like I was supposed to train myself to develop some kind of radar for sociopaths and psychos and I was supposed to be able to...
by Asia Matos | Mar 14, 2013 | Art
I know a lot of my colleagues are entering the working world with whatever time management and organizational skills and habits they already had in college – be they amazing or downright bad. In my experience of knowing all kinds of organizers and time managers, not only do three specific type of agenda keepers come to mind, but their respective time management style(s).And yes – time management is definitely an art, and everyone needs to discover their best medium. I will say that no one ever just sticks to one thing; I’ve seen many-a-time-manager drift through the different types of agenda keepers throughout their entire lives.There’s three main types of agenda keepers: The Scheduler – A Scheduler is someone who would say “Let me pencil you in” or “I just need to write this in my agenda”. They need access to a an actual calendar at all times – be they digital or physical. Schedulers tend to be the most old-fashioned and favor old-school methods the most. The Tasker – Lists are the haven of the Tasker. Long, organized lists with just a few details underneath are typically all that the Tasker needs. Crossing each item as its complete is a moment of exhilaration for a Tasker, and they don’t fret even when their list seems interminable (because it ultimately is). The Tracker – Trackers are always looking at the clock. How many minutes are they spending here? How about there? Trackers are most worried about how many hours they spend doing something. Pure-Trackers are hard to find; most people only dabble into Tracking life. 6 Best Time Management Tools...
by Asia Matos | Mar 7, 2013 | Art
by Asia Matos | Feb 16, 2013 | Art
I’ll just come right out and say it. Graduated life is freakin’ weird. I find myself clinging on to my alma mater like it’s the only thing in this world that’s going to protect me from the doubt, the sideways glances, and the overall confusion of ‘Hey, Art Major! What are you doing here?’My background is (almost) purely creative – so I understand the misunderstanding. What’s a painter doing if she’s not in a studio all day painting? Well, how many people do you know who are buying art? Please, introduce me to them.What they don’t tell you in art school is what to do afterwards. They tell you to keep painting – and that’s valid! It keeps humanism alive and it feeds the artistic soul. But it’s a vicious cycle of artists graduating, realizing that it’s a different world for the creative individual, and then resorting to teaching art to more uninformed art kids. How are you going to survive? Not everyone is cut out for professor-dom! While the ‘starving artist’ idea is mostly dead thanks to viral marketing and skewed demand curves, not everyone is able to be a famous Jeff Koons.A colleague of mine – a mentor and friend whom I trust very much – told me that I was going to need to survive, and I had to use my brain to do it. She said I couldn’t wait tables, or custom frame, or bartend for forever (although the tips would be grand). At some point, I was going to have to hurdle over the poverty line and start making a comfortable living. But how?...
by Asia Matos | Feb 8, 2013 | Art, Uncategorized
A colleague of mine approached me with a very serious question: What can galleries do to acquire expected revenue? How does the traditional gallery adapt to 2013? The thought of a gallery having expected revenue is almost laughable. People just don’t buy art like they used to. The creative world has (arguably) suffered the most since the 2008 – 2009 economic decline. Hundreds of galleries across the nation have closed down. When the government needs to cut back on spending, they usually trim the creative realms first. What gives? The art world gives, and there’s danger to the decline. Gallery directors everywhere cringe and artists create in a silent kind of fear – the kind that says, “Yeah. I can’t make a living from my art.” It’s a quiet, barely noticeable identifying factor between artists when they get together at openings and other art-related functions. They all know the truth. Even still, there’s hope – at least, for the galleries who can keep up. The economy will bounce back, and while it may never be as great as it used to be, when the economy begins to sit pretty again, the galleries who hung in there (and became innovators) will be top dogs. Galleries who want to survive should attempt to clear at least a few of these hurdles: Social Media – participating in the art conversation online is an absolute must. There’s a new generation of art leaders coming up, and galleries need to be able to adapt to that. If a gallery features a younger artist, and if that younger artists’ generation will become buyers one day, why wouldn’t you...
