Introduction by Tracey Claire
“[i]Practicing artists are as likely to be found behind a desk as in front of a class at the VCA & MCM”
That was the theme of my application for the Bronwyn Jane Adams Memorial Award which bestowed the funds to enable me to mount the Hidden Talents exhibition and publish a catalogue.
The objective of the award is to provide recognition and assistance to professional staff to enable them to pursue a worthwhile activity in relation to their work and I can think of no more fitting and inclusive way of doing that than to share with the community just a few of the ‘hidden talents’ of the Professional staff of this Faculty.
In 2010, UOM Vice Chancellor, Glyn Davis said [ii]“Institutions should be human shaped, as varied as the communities and people they serve.” In 2013, Barber, Donnelly and Rizvi said “[iii]the administration and service functions – staffed increasingly by top professionals in specialist fields – make up the engine that keeps the vast, complex organization running smoothly.” Our own institution; our faculty; the VCA & MCM is about as heterogeneous as you could ask for, distinctly human shaped yet a well oiled machine. The people it serves as well as the people who serve it have a complex and collaborative relationship. Academics, Professional Staff and students alike feed into and feed from this unique artistic environment.
Be it dancing, cycling, sailing, knitting, painting, writing, film making or performing, all the individuals in this exhibition are creative artists thriving in a melting hot pot of creativity that is the VCA & MCM, or as Academy Award winning filmmaker and Film School alumnist Adam Elliott put it “the simmering compost bin of a fruitful garden”.
So that clinches it for me - we are special people at a very special place!
Professional staff tend to go about their business quietly, excelling in the dark arts of spreadsheet wizardry and effortless administration but in their private lives conjuring mysterious creations. Toiling endlessly in the hours beyond their professional lives, yet inspired and nurtured by precisely this environment, they distill these experiences and produce magic.
Their talents are, well, more hidden and it is with great pleasure I reveal these mercurial chameleons and their myriad passions.
[i] Application for the Bronwyn Jane Adams Memorial Award, 2013, Tracey Claire
[ii] The Republic Of Learning, Boyer Lecture Series 2010, Glyn Davis
[iii] The Avalanche is Coming, Higher Education and The Revolution Ahead, Essay, 2013, Michael Barber, Katelyn Donnelly, Saad Rizvi
“[i]Practicing artists are as likely to be found behind a desk as in front of a class at the VCA & MCM”
That was the theme of my application for the Bronwyn Jane Adams Memorial Award which bestowed the funds to enable me to mount the Hidden Talents exhibition and publish a catalogue.
The objective of the award is to provide recognition and assistance to professional staff to enable them to pursue a worthwhile activity in relation to their work and I can think of no more fitting and inclusive way of doing that than to share with the community just a few of the ‘hidden talents’ of the Professional staff of this Faculty.
In 2010, UOM Vice Chancellor, Glyn Davis said [ii]“Institutions should be human shaped, as varied as the communities and people they serve.” In 2013, Barber, Donnelly and Rizvi said “[iii]the administration and service functions – staffed increasingly by top professionals in specialist fields – make up the engine that keeps the vast, complex organization running smoothly.” Our own institution; our faculty; the VCA & MCM is about as heterogeneous as you could ask for, distinctly human shaped yet a well oiled machine. The people it serves as well as the people who serve it have a complex and collaborative relationship. Academics, Professional Staff and students alike feed into and feed from this unique artistic environment.
Be it dancing, cycling, sailing, knitting, painting, writing, film making or performing, all the individuals in this exhibition are creative artists thriving in a melting hot pot of creativity that is the VCA & MCM, or as Academy Award winning filmmaker and Film School alumnist Adam Elliott put it “the simmering compost bin of a fruitful garden”.
So that clinches it for me - we are special people at a very special place!
Professional staff tend to go about their business quietly, excelling in the dark arts of spreadsheet wizardry and effortless administration but in their private lives conjuring mysterious creations. Toiling endlessly in the hours beyond their professional lives, yet inspired and nurtured by precisely this environment, they distill these experiences and produce magic.
Their talents are, well, more hidden and it is with great pleasure I reveal these mercurial chameleons and their myriad passions.
[i] Application for the Bronwyn Jane Adams Memorial Award, 2013, Tracey Claire
[ii] The Republic Of Learning, Boyer Lecture Series 2010, Glyn Davis
[iii] The Avalanche is Coming, Higher Education and The Revolution Ahead, Essay, 2013, Michael Barber, Katelyn Donnelly, Saad Rizvi