Originally posted 08-03-2013
For many of us hopefuls, we were not discovered right out of our MFA Thesis show. Our shows weren’t bought out. We weren’t collected. Instead, we were left with school bills, no serious job prospects, and many questions. What do we do now? Teach? Yeah, good luck…
But that’s what you do out of grad school, no? I’m afraid not. Getting a teaching gig is about as probable as getting picked up by a gallery. And why is that? The economy? Maybe. But the real reason is that there are no openings. All the positions are taken. Back in the day, there were nothing but teaching positions. Schools were grabbing artists right out of undergrad, but no more. These same artists, now professors, are still at it, holding on to their cozy teaching jobs, leaving a generation of artists desperately sending out resumes to every and any school that might have them.
My mantra since graduation has been hoping that someone will get pregnant and I can swoop in and get my foot in the door. Right now, a more realistic response is to hope for someone to retire or (too ashamed to say the alternative).
And where am I in all of this? I’m sending out resumes to every place within 2-3 hour driving distance, applying to handfuls of exhibitions in hopes of padding my CV to make myself more appealing to the hiring committees. I’m a little more discerning than most in applying, only approaching places that are asking for it. Three months out of grad school, I have an interview next week for a position teaching a section of Drawing I. I consider myself fortunate to have even gotten the interview. Wish me luck.