I can tell you many stories of my own experience with this, having also gone into the cycle of using one credit card to prop up repayments on another one, etc. etc. It’s very easy to get caught up in this kind of behaviour, especially when credit is so easy to attain and if you are going through a lean period with sales.
You need to understand that when you are standing in front of an audience delivering a lecture, making a public speaking engagement, you are selling whatever it is you’re speaking about. You don’t want people to get up and walk out after five minutes, so bearing that in mind, you want them to buy what it is that you are selling or talking about.
In one sense your topic is already defined. How do you make yourself unique given that the above is true? It is important to remember that whether you’re an artist, a student, a bureaucrat in the arts industry, everyone has their own unique story to tell, this is simply because everyone is different and has had different life experiences that brings them to the point where they are in their lives. That said, everybody is in a unique situation when they have to define their topic. In the following few sentences, I am going to be giving you a quick rundown on simple direct ways to define your topic.
You can find your own metaphors, which serve your speaking engagement best. Once you have these in place you can weave the stories into a few as an introduction. This is called stacking. It’s a very effective way of bringing messages home and engaging your audience right from the outset. I might begin a lecture for example, using the metaphor about the “X” factor, followed on shortly afterwards via the “Fast track highway to success”, just to really strengthen the message that I’m trying to convey.
As an artist giving a public presentation such as public speaking engagement, I have been aware from the onset that it wouldn’t impress anyone if I had arrived on the stage looking slouchy. So rather than turning up in my paint-splattered overalls just to make a point, I do quite the opposite.
There are other techniques you can also use during the course of a public speaking lecture. There is a technique called ‘Pattern interrupted’ which is like what I suggested above with the: sh sh sh sh sh…. or you can completely change the subject by going: “Can you smell that? Is that popcorn?“– This is a good example.
Public speaking essentially is about the “Art of speaking”. Muscles control your voice. You must warm up the muscles before you exercise, we may strain or damage them. Keep this in mind because it’s a very, very good way to start a lecture or to start any form of public presentation.
If you live in a town or suburb where there are only two or three newspapers or magazines, pitch to your favourite one or at least to the newspaper and the magazine which you feel will best suit your ends. Make a connection with the editor if possible and let them know that you won’t be sending the same information out to their competition. If you do this you’re more likely to have a published verbatim alongside the excellent quality photograph you submit along with the media release.
It is not necessary for all artists to have to experience such a dramatic incident as having a fire in a studio to bring about a major change in their outlook on life. Some artists instinctively do this simply in the process of their work in the studio. This is just how it happened from there and it left an indelible imprint, which has continued to this day.
My entrée into environmental artwork was not my first shift in media and style. I began my artistic life as a figurative painter, attracted to that form of expression for its narrative qualities. During art school I had moved from figurative paintings to more abstract work.
My art school days were exciting right from the start. I met many amazing people, both students and lecturers. I created deep friendships and as fate would have it, I ended up in a five-year tumultuous relationship with the very same young woman that I met in the cafe the year before. Her name was Barbara and she was beautiful. Just what a young man fresh out of the confines of a four-year stint at an all boys boarding school needed.
My teenage years were mostly centered on my various infatuations with girls and my adventures with my friends on surfing safaris, or surfaris as we called them. I imagine this connection with the ocean, which I developed as a child, later had a strong impact upon the type of art I would end up creating.
As a young artist, I was fortunate enough to interact with many people who played a significant role in shaping the Australian contemporary art world.
Although one of my favourite places to exhibit is in New York, I also love to show in many places on the international stage. I’ve been accustomed to exhibiting my art in many places other than my home country Australia, because of a number of reasons. I believe the primary reason is because of my work being different from standard practice.
I have learned that the main reason that I have ever experienced any misunderstanding in China was simply because of the issue of face.
Exhibiting in China comes with a necessity to learn what is known as the “Chinese way”. This is the way that has been taught to me by a very good friend of mine who is a Chinese businessman.
I was on a bit of a mission because I had seen a certain type of driftwood stick that was washed up and down the coast around that area, which was really suitable for me to use as framing for some of my assemblages, so I really wanted to gather as many as possible.
My work with driftwood assemblages and sculptures began in 1998 and has continues to be a major part of my creative output. An article described these driftwood assemblages, which I exhibited in a solo show in Australia in early 2004, as having been created with: “A sheer depth and determination…Including, death-defying moments grabbing the perfect piece of wood.”
Research the gallery, find out who is the director, and write a letter of introduction with details about your website, if you have one, and include a CD, though these days I think it’s preferable to send some good quality photographs as well.
