January 2020
Adam Myatt BA鈥�12Gallery AssistantSaint Mary鈥檚 University Art GalleryHalifax
鈥淚 love art, the creative process, and hearing people鈥檚 stories. That鈥檚 the main reason I love working in the arts, the ability to help people actualize their stories and vision.鈥�
What made you choose to study at Saint Mary鈥檚?
I didn鈥檛 know what I wanted to do when I was graduating from high school. I was generally good in academics, but I wasn鈥檛 focused in any particular area. I applied to a couple local universities as I grew up here. Saint Mary鈥檚 offered me a really good entrance scholarship, so that was the key incentive to come here.
Why did you decide to get your Bachelor of Arts in Psychology here?
I decided on psych because of my professor in the intro to psychology class I took at Saint Mary鈥檚. There weren鈥檛 any psychology classes in my high school, so I had no previous exposure to it. My intro psych class was incredible. The professor was great, Dave Bourgeois, who is still a professor here. He was really funny and smart and I felt like these were the kind of people I wanted to be around and that psychology was what I wanted to do.
What was your experience like at Saint Mary鈥檚?
At first, I wasn鈥檛 sure how I鈥檇 fare here as it鈥檚 a big sports school and I鈥檓 not a sports person. I was a little nervous as I wasn鈥檛 sure how I鈥檇 fit in. I really liked my time here, in fact I ended up sticking around working at the Saint Mary鈥檚 Art Gallery. The educators here are incredible and the classes are smaller than elsewhere, which is great.
Could you tell us about your current position as the Gallery Assistant at Saint Mary鈥檚 University Art Gallery?
I started working at the art gallery as a volunteer while getting my degree. That quickly turned into an events position and I kept getting more involved with the gallery. There were a few years where I was helping with installations and now I鈥檓 the full-time Gallery Assistant. Now I鈥檓 the installer for shows with the Assistant Curator. I love the work! It鈥檚 interesting and exciting, I鈥檓 always the first person to see the stuff and open the crates.
Are there any upcoming exhibitions at Saint Mary鈥檚 University Art Gallery you鈥檇 like to mention?
This month there is a show of works from our permanent collection, which focuses on contemporary Canadian artists. In April, there will be an exhibition of Michael Bidner鈥檚 work. He was on the cutting edge of mail art and a pioneer of using print media and photo copiers. A lot of his work isn鈥檛 really well known, so the point of the exhibit is to put a spotlight on him.
What was your career path after graduating from SMU?
I graduated from Saint Mary鈥檚 in 2012 and since then I鈥檝e had a varied employment path because of opportunities that came up. For a number of years, I was the Education Coordinator at the Youth Project which is a local LGBT advocacy organization. I spent a few years traveling Nova Scotia, PEI, and New Brunswick doing education work. I talked to classes, did assemblies, and was heavily involved in queer education and advocacy. I also chaired a provincial queer activism organization called the Rainbow Action Project. I spent a few years in that line of work and needed a break. Then I started working at Pier 21 and now I鈥檓 back here at Saint Mary鈥檚 and back in the art world. Also, during that time, I started doing stand-up comedy, written and performed in a few plays, and wrote and produced my first short film through the Film-Makers鈥� Cooperative.
What moments in your career have been the most rewarding/exciting so far?
My work as an Education Coordinator was, and still is, very important to me. That position is probably the most rewarding thing I鈥檝e done so far. I鈥檓 also very proud of the work I鈥檝e written and produced and my stand-up comedy. Working at the gallery is also rewarding. Putting in long hours to actualize someone else鈥檚 creative vision is really rewarding. I love art, the creative process, and hearing people鈥檚 stories. That鈥檚 the main reason I love working in the arts, the ability to help people actualize their stories and vision.
Do you feel Saint Mary鈥檚 University prepared you for your career? How?
During my time was an Education Coordinator, I applied my formal education more than any other job I鈥檝e had. My degree might not be exactly applicable to some of the positions I鈥檝e had, but my education helped me become more well-rounded and develop skills like empathy. My ability to collaborate with people and do that work was precipitated by my experience in university. I may not be applying Freud鈥檚 theories directly to my work, but I spent a lot of time talking with people and collaborating.
Have you used Saint Mary鈥檚 alumni network as a student or an alumnus? How?
I don鈥檛 stay formally connect to alumni through the network, but I do get the correspondence and see what鈥檚 happening. There is a core group of people I went through school with that I鈥檓 still connected with. I think that kind of community is really special. That鈥檚 why I really liked the Faculty, Alumni, Student, and Staff (F.A.S.S.) Art Exhibit we had in November/December. It鈥檚 the one time of the year that I see a lot of people that I haven鈥檛 seen in a while.
Do you have any career building advice to offer students?
At the end of the day, I just think people should be doing what they want to be doing. I think if there鈥檚 a way to do something that you like, and you鈥檙e going to be able to pay your bills that way, do it! Be open to new possibilities as sometimes we get stuck in our own ideas of who we are and what we should be doing. For a long time, I thought I couldn鈥檛 work in the arts because I don鈥檛 have education in that area. I was wrong; if you want to do it - you just start doing it. The only difference between you right now and someone who is doing the thing you want to do, is that they鈥檙e doing it. That is literally the only difference.
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