On November first, I went to work with my mother, who is a mixed media artist. Her studio is at 1000 Parker Street Studios in East Vancouver. She runs her own business completely on her own. To start off the day, my mom and I went out for lunch on Commercial Drive at this place called Thai Basil. We walked around for a short amount of time, then made our way to her studio. During my time at her studio, I got a good look at it, and I really enjoyed that. I hadn’t been there in a while, and it was nice to look at the new things she had added and all of her decor around the space. Later on, I observed while she cracked tile grout. She uses this in her artwork as one of the layers that she paints on top of. I wanted to help her, but she knows what she’s doing so I wouldn’t want to disturb her work. I also prepped some wooden panels for her by painting them with either white, or black gesso. After, I worked on the questions under this paragraph! After we were done working, we decided to end the day with a well-deserved scoop of ice cream at La Casa Gelato. Overall, I had a wonderful day going to work with my mom and I was really amused by her artwork and the process of making her pieces.
1. What did you hear, see, smell, and feel in the work environment on Nov. 1st?
Heard: City noises, birds, footsteps, a heater, construction, cars, the sound of my mom cutting, weaving, painting, cracking tile grout
Saw: many pieces of art (my mom’s and her studio mates’), pictures, paintbrushes, rocks, shelves, books, drawers, fake plants, wooden pieces, paint splatters, picture frames, lots of scissors, thread, paint swatches, brooms, hung paintings, pipes
Smelled: paint, dust, stale air, chemicals, tile grout
Felt: cold, inspired, enjoyment, artistic
2. What about the environment would motivate you to wake up every day to attend work?
The environment was very colourful and there are many pieces of nature in here (plants, seashells, wood, rocks, sticks). There are also many artworks, and they are very entertaining to look at, there’s so much room for creativity. There is also a corner in the studio that is very cozy where you can rest.
3. What about the work environment would discourage you from waking up every day to attend work?
The area it is in (East Vancouver- It’s in a kind of unsafe area especially when its nighttime.), how far away it is (45 minutes- 1 hour commute)
4. What is ONE thing you found interesting about your workplace visit?
This place is over 100 years old and used to be a mattress factory. It has a real freight elevator that has been here since the place opened. Sometimes the elevator breaks, and it constantly must be fixed. I remember going on it when I was younger, I was afraid that it would collapse.