This summer I had the pleasure to intern for the Women’s Art Association of Canada (WAAC), a not-for-profit charitable art organization based in Toronto, Canada. This was a very exciting experience as it aligned with many of my interests and my studies in art history and communications at McGill University.
I am from Toronto and I am very lucky to have grown up in a family that valued the arts. My parents encouraged me at a young age to discuss, engage, and create art. I studied piano throughout school and took part in many dance groups. I am enriched by such an art-centered upbringing and I am extremely grateful for it. To cope with my stress – especially during the current unrest surrounding COVID-19 – I find myself relearning old piano pieces and drawing with pastels. The arts have always been such an integral part of my identity and it was no surprise that I chose to major in art history. I am entering my final year at McGill which leaves me feeling sad, nervous but also very excited for what’s to come. After studying this discipline for several years, I was eager to have real-life experience in Canada’s art scene.
When I interviewed for this position, I was in Edinburgh on a semester abroad. I was so thrilled to have received this position and to have such an exciting experience waiting for me back in Canada. My objective for this internship was primarily to get real-life experience in the art world. I’ve studied art for so many years, but I had no idea how it translated to real life. I wanted to get a better sense of what it meant to curate, to sell art, to organize events. I hoped that through this internship, I would have a better sense if the art world appealed to me as a career path. I had spent the two summers before my internship working at my family restaurant – therefore such an internship experience was completely foreign to me and I was eager for this change.
The Women’s Art Association of Canada is a not-for-profit, member-based organization that has been around since 1887. It was founded by a Canadian female artist named Mary Ella Dignam, whose objective was to create a club where women interested in the arts could come together and collaborate. For the past 133 years, WAAC has been promoting the arts in Toronto through exhibitions, fundraisers scholarships and has hosted some of Canada’s leading female artists.
My responsibilities as an intern completely changed when the COVID-19 pandemic transpired. Originally, I was to assist in curatorial activities, in the preparations and executions of summer parties and exhibitions, and PR work. My experience interning for WAAC was going to be highly interactive and collaborative. However, once my work moved to a remote delivery, my responsibilities shifted. Exhibitions and events were put on hold which meant my supervisors had to find other ways to make use of me. Instead, I was to focus on improving the association’s social media presence in the hopes of attracting a younger audience. I was to work on updating the association’s website by researching software and programs best suited for WAAC. I worked alongside a WAAC board member to digitize the association’s archives that date back hundreds of years. I was responsible for creating press releases and contacting appropriate media and art outlets. Moreover, I would assist my supervisor in small daily tasks that arose.
One of the highlights of my internship was learning about the association’s rich history. Working through the archives, I learned so much and grew to appreciate WAAC so much more. Working through the archives also made me think about possible topics for my research paper. The number one problem the Women’s Art Association of Canada struggles with is staying relevant. They are one of the oldest art organizations in Toronto and yet nobody seems to know of them. I want to look into why and how art groups stay relevant in our developing and everchanging environment – and what that means for the future of WAAC. I am taking ARTH 490, and the supervisor for that course is Professor Mary Hunter.
This internship has shed an extremely honest light on the art world. It is filled with highs and lows; it can be so rewarding but also extremely frustrating. It will shape my future career goals as it has taught me to never give up and to adapt to whatever comes my way. Although all the exciting interactive and curatorial responsibilities of my internship did not take place, I learned a great deal about PR and archival work which will help in both my academic pursuits and future work.
The funding I received thanks to the generosity of Dr. Max Stern’s estate helped me a great deal this summer. COVID-19 has affected my family in ways I could have never anticipated, and the funding I received allowed me to pay for expenses I incurred without having to burden my parents during these difficult times. Moreover, with the funding I received, I was able to pay for a summer course I took in the month of August and I am incredibly grateful for that.
Working remotely came with its challenges. In the early months, the stresses surrounding the pandemic were quite consuming and it was difficult to focus on my work. It was also challenging to work from home surrounded by siblings and parents all navigating this new way of life. I finally accepted that much is out of my control and that I should not be so hard on myself if at times I don’t stick to my schedule.
I want to thank the Max Stern Estate for this generous award. This award allowed me to pursue an incredible experience interning for the Women’s Art Association of Canada. It allowed me to focus on my works and eased my stress regarding finances. I am so grateful for this experience, and I thank the Max Stern Estate so very much.
