Help the Metal Arts Guild forge the future

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Permalink Reply by Calvin Dana Munroe on February 1, 2010 at 7:02pm

MAG is an essential part of arts based culture in Ontario and increasingly Canada at large. Artists taking the initiative to challenge and encourage each other only promotes a more dynamic and diverse community as well as produces better and better work. The work we do is solitary enough and we all share the interests and problems (and rants and complaints and frustrations) that come from what it is we love. No one understands metal people like other metal people. What I like best about MAG is the exchange it makes possible; social, professional, and technical exchange between members and the public through media and events.

MAG keeps me thinking of what it is I'm doing and why I'm doing it. I keep an attention to what skills I wish to work on, why I have put them off, how I can rectify that and so on. Like wise there are may in the guild that have businesses that are at the same or similar level as my own, suffer the same growing pains and the perspectives in that area are refreshing and extremely illuminating. There is nothing like a fresh set of minds and eyes on a problem to make it less of a problem. Generally it is inspiring to be in a group and involved in its direction when I am surrounded with so many different, extremely talented, creative and motivated people. It is uplifting and there are days that that alone lights a fire under my ass and gets me moving in a needed or new direction.

My contributions to MAG as a board member have been good and I will look forward to improving my role by learning better how a good guild runs (as we decide what makes our guild good). My lacking contributions to the expanded media of the MAGazine and possibly the Website are things that I wish to fit into my scheme. Not to mention I have in the past been a good background worker and now being in Montreal I can find something that is even more background to work at. No matter what, it is my/our guild and it only gets better, easier and more fun with more hands and minds. There are some serious perks and some great advantages both qualitative and quantitative to be gained by membership...but everyone has read "The Little Red Hen" right? :)

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Permalink Reply by Charles Funnell on February 4, 2010 at 12:14am

Because I did not graduate from a Metals Programme and because I found this field a little later in life, MAG has been very important to me. It has made me feel connected to a larger community who shares my passions. It has given me avenues to exhibit, to gain exposure and to develop a network. Not to mention that it has offered me opportunities to learn and further enhance my knowledge as well as skills. What more could I ask for!

As a new board member I hope to contribute to the continued growth of the guild. Hopefully through this process and with your imput we can map out a strong direction for the guild. After all the 2013 SNAG conference is an amazing opportunity to show what we can do and give us an incredible profile within the North American metals scene.

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Permalink Reply by Blair Waugh on February 6, 2010 at 3:41pm

Being a new member, I am finding my way around MAG's website. Even though I am not Ontario based, I do get worth out of MAG. Worth comes from belonging to a group of like minded artisans who are endeavouring to better themselves and each other. Although I am located in the greater Vancouver region, it is easy to feel isolated and almost locked into my four walls of my studio. Mag serves to broaden my horizons and vision for my craft. Sounds sappy but it is true. I really like the idea of a Canadian based organization. Through Mag I have also met some people with whom I have corresponded. So I answered question number two first.

On the first question, I do not yet know what I like best about MAG as I am still finding so many things out. I do like the entusiasm that I heard while skyping in to a meeting not too long ago. I appreciate the ongoing discussion as MAG demonstrates that it is open to change with the needs of the membership.

I can see myself contributing more as I become more familiar with the organization. Being in B.C. it is hard to be involved in person with everyone in Ontario, but if MAG is truely to be a Canadian organization then I could see myself being actively involved on the westcoast. We have many metal artists out here who really do not belong to anything, so it would be an area to grow the membership from if we could put worth in it for people out side of Ontario.

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Permalink Reply by Andrew Goss on February 6, 2010 at 4:47pm

While I was studying jewellery at George Brown and living in Toronto, MAG was important in connecting me with jewellers and future jewellers. Probably the most important purpose it served was to show that there was a life after being a student. It confirmed that there was a community, that there was a profession in which I fit. What I needed from MAG back then was the opportunity to show my work, to be judged by my peers, to feel like I belonged. I still see that as an important function of MAG: to show students that there is a supportive community waiting for them.

After we left the city for country life, our first move was an hour from Toronto, so we came in for MAG meetings. That regular connection with MAG had as much to do with keeping our connection with Toronto as with other metalworkers. It was after one of those meetings when we were heading home at night that our Volkswagen van hit a deer. Both the van and the deer didn't survive. Maybe that accident didn't have anything to do with it, but a couple of years later we moved further from Toronto to the Owen Sound area where we live now.

MAG's function then shifted (for me personally) from physical meetings to communication through regular publications. If the internet had existed then things would have been really different. So the magazine became really important to me, as was the annual show—the chance to show that I still existed—that I was still creating, and the chance to see the work of my contemporaries.

MAG now has a large internet presence which hosts forums and email discussions, a web site where we can submit and show our work, a means of communicating instantly. There is a also a regular magazine on real paper, which is critical in terms of keeping a record for the future.

So what's next? Where does MAG fit in the future? I'll do some thinking about this for my next post.

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Permalink Reply by Andrew Goss on February 6, 2010 at 6:48pm

We've recently seen a huge number of non-professional jewellers in the marketplace. By non-professional I mean those who don't depend on it for a living, or who are doing it as a hobby or a leisure-time activity. On Etsy alone there are over 62,000 users selling jewellery. So now more than ever we need an organization that sets professional standards, whether it be through an annual show or a publication. This is as much about educating the general public as ourselves. We need some kind of critical eye, or we run the risk of letting the public think that simply stringing beads is a craft worthy of critical acclaim.

A lot of us have had three years or more post-secondary education in this discipline, not to mention more years than we care to remember working at it full-time for ridiculously low wages. The least of my demands for MAG in the future is that it deals with standards and setting those standards high. Having said that, I’m not exactly sure how an organization does it except through such things as juried shows, or juried online exhibitions or awards for graduating students. Perhaps we’re talking about some kind of MAG stamp of approval on a website, advertising or business card. Or perhaps MAG could oversee something akin to what the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts does: allow the best to put an RCA designation after their name. The word "goldsmith" has no controls on it and is used by almost anyone who wants to, so that wouldn't work. But perhaps another designation would show some kind of quality achievement that the public might eventually understand.

But getting back to the non-professionals. I see MAG's role partly as a way of encouraging those people into the field as professionals, and again setting a higher standard, not only in aesthetics, but also in terms of pricing.

I still think the role MAG plays in leading students into the professional field is vital, whether it be exposing them to quality work, keeping a database of those willing to act as mentors, or hosting competitions and awards for student work.

Community building and connecting remains extremely important for those outside the Toronto area. A lot of us live in small communities or rural areas and MAG may be one of the few ways individuals can connect with those pursuing similar goals. With the rise of Facebook, Twitter, Etsy, blogs and so on, this may not be as important as it once was. And MAG is already doing a good job exploiting the potential of the internet. But perhaps MAG could stimulate a grassroots movement using its membership lists to put metalworkers in touch with other metalworkers in their own communities. In Owen Sound we're trying to get about six jewellers together for informal regular chats to see what happens.

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Permalink Reply by Calvin Dana Munroe on February 12, 2010 at 5:33pm

Those are some good ideas and touch on things that have meaning for me as well. I was surprised to find that both the OCC and MAG had no jury status memberships (i.e. just to qualify for voting, membership on boards and committees, submitting to shows, etc. ). It is important representation and direction of priorities are influenced by those that have a truly vested interest in the aims of the organization. Having a status and associated brand of sorts to utilize as a seal of approval of standards is a good idea indeed. Even among professional jewellers there are some questionable quality and ethics so any way to stand out in that field of many is to be welcomed. If it were a vehicle to educate both up and coming jewellers and the public alike in quality and value it would be all the better in gaining trust.

I really do think we are in a time and place ripe for it as well. Referencing etsy, and speaking from experience selling there as well, there is everything from high quality fine work for appropriate pricing to bare bones beginners and even those masquerading as makers to utilize an inexpensive and well known selling venue. That being said, there are all kinds of people out there looking for good quality work that are not affraid to pay for it. Any confidence that can be gained by associations that make setting standards a priority will only encourage more interest from clients and draw interest from jewellers looking for something more.

I look forward to discussing this potential further.

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Permalink Reply by Alastair on February 8, 2010 at 2:02pm

Since I was young, I've always been interested in the crafts and construction. Playing with Lego, K'Nex, Lincoln Logs, Capsella, and model airplanes I was fascinated with the world of fabrication. Though my social skills suffered, I gladly locked myself in the basement surrounded by materials and tools. When leaving high school, all my friends talked about going off to University to become Engineers and Architects. Serious professions that I felt were too regimented and restrictive. I wanted to physically work on my own projects and creations and becoming a jeweller seemed fitting.

Sometime during my studies I came across the MAGazine and thought it would be great to be featured one day as something to show Mum. Then I discovered the Metal Arts Guild is so much more. It is a whole community of working artists who hold similar interests to my own. In this line of work only a fraction of an education occurs within the classroom. Quite often the best lessons are learned in the pub, in the hall during lunch or alone in the studio late at night.

What I like best about MAG is the sense of community. We’re all working and learning together, and I feel a great respect for the elders as well as the students who join us every year. Each year I look forward to the college review issue. I’m hoping for some real challengers and competitors who are just entering the ring. I also look forward to the show, to try my best and compete amongst the greats who have been my mentors and roll models. We promote a community of persistent improvement, developing a higher degree of craft and always striving for creativity.

MAG has helped me personally in several ways. I’ve benefitted immensely by meeting and learning from experts working in the trade. Listening to their advise has given me a leading edge on growing my own business and improving my craft. I’ve also been able to befriend a number of other metalsmiths working with different materials and techniques. This sprouts new inspiration and no longer am I trapped into working in a jewellery specific field with traditional materials. MAG has given me cross-country exposure with both the website and the juried exhibitions. The website serves as a great free portfolio where I can send potential customers to view my work. Without these I would surely be stuck in my basement.

I foresee myself continuing to actively volunteer on event specific projects and day-to-day operations. I will keep spreading the good word and praise this community as something not only beneficial but necessary in being known in the Canadian metal arts. I really like the idea of the “Metal Arts Guild stamp of approval” showing some sort of quality-controlled standard. In the future, perhaps in 2 years I see my volunteering going to the next level. When I’m capable of taking a more demanding roll I would love to do so. It is my belief that it’s my duty to pass on the great benefits and transfer knowledge I’ve learned to those who follow. (I kind of feel like shouting “Now who’s with me?”)

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