Yet more opportunites to network arose yesterday when I attended a Creative Leicestershire seminar, in association with Loughborough University Arts. The seminar was led by Jack J Hutchinson, artist, musician and journalist – to name a few of his talents! The seminar was a very relaxed and informal discussion about the different forms of social media, its various uses as well as advice on the dos and don’ts of this way of communication! Anyone who knows me will be aware that I am not considered the most social media savvy person on the planet, but as the seminar progressed it began to dawn on me that I knew more than I realised and wasn’t quite the novice that I had imagined!
Jack was a very informed, engaging speaker and his talk was peppered with funny, personal anecdotes about the perils of social media! He provided many useful hints and tips – I particularly liked the idea of pre-programming tweets in the run up to an exhibition – when you have so much else to organise it would be great to know that your PR machine is sorted! I shall definitely be investigating some of the websites and tools he mentioned.
The seminar was also useful in that it provided yet another opportunity for face-to-face networking. Two of the artists that I met at the EMVAN workshop, plus the workshop co-ordinator, were at the above event along with a familiar face from the uni! I also exchanged details with another artist and of course, I now follow Jack and Creative Leicestershire on Twitter!
In other news – I am now in the run-up to my exhibition of Connecting Threads at the Charnwood Museum
in Loughborough (5th April – 1st June), so am busy finalising last minute details – all the paperwork, organising vans, and scaffolds, checking the equipment etc. I have come to the conclusion that the sound equipment is a bit like Christmas tree lights – no matter how carefully I pack them away, there’s always one that doesn’t work when you get them out again – grrrrrrrrrrrr! It’s about now that I begin to panic and think I will never be ready and it won’t be installed on time – thank heavens for my patient ‘other half’ who always supports and reassures me! How do the rest of you keep calm in the countdown to the opening of an exhibition?
Oh well, on with the list-making and paperwork….
Carolyn J Roberts 