This Saturday, January 20th, The Hyde Collection is featuring a special event aimed towards high school students and young adults interested in pursuing a career in the arts. Think you can’t be an artist and make money too? Find out how to walk that path by hearing from those who have done it at Creative Futures.
About the Event
Creative Futures is taking place at 1pm on Saturday, January 20th, and it’s free. The speakers presenting include Troy-based illustrator Ira Marcks, local graphic designer and Sidekick Creative founder Will Fowler, and head of the Media Arts program and Humanities Department at SUNY Adirondack Nick Paigo.
Each speaker will discuss their respective field, and then they’ll offer a related arts activity to teach students about their professions.
“We think it’s really important for young people to know that graduation doesn’t have to be the end of creativity,” Jenny Hutchinson, educator at The Hyde, said in a statement.
Meet the Speakers
Ira Marcks
Marcks grew up with a strong passion for storytelling and comics. He considered getting into animation, but ended up working as a teacher’s aide while drawing his own comics and posting them online. Now, he’s found a way to marry teaching and drawing.
“I started building a little career for myself, teaching comics and narrative, and getting work creating educational and informational materials using comics as the medium,” Marcks said in a statement.
He also teaches classes, makes presentations at schools, and creates comic books for groups like the Workforce Development Institute.
Will Fowler
Fowler always loved to draw and decided to get into architecture, thinking that would be a great way to utilize his skills while still having a solid career.
“It seemed like a viable career option because I knew I wasn’t going to make a living selling paintings,” he said in a statement.
One semester at college taught him that architecture was not for him. Gradually, he drifted towards graphic design instead and now he has a career he loves.
Nick Paigo
Paigo exercised his love for drawing by illustrating basically everything he could. But he realized he had a serious knack for computers, too. His father suggested going into graphic design and Paigo found his true passion.
Like the other speakers, Paigo feels strongly that young people do not have to give up their creative ambitions in search of a “real” job.
“There are tons of opportunities out there, in all sort of fields,” he said in a statement.
Creature Futures is aimed towards high school students and young adults, but the content is appropriate for preteens and young teens as well. Parents and educators are of course welcome to attend as well.
