Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Vicki Genberg. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Vicki, thanks for joining us today. Do you wish you had started sooner?

I was working on a PhD in education when I started drawing classes to mitigate my isolation working alone at home. So I started in my late 30’s drawing, then painting. I did various kinds of sculpture, clay, plaster, metal and also printmaking. This continued for a number of years. This all took place in Switzerland. Then in my fifties(!) I went to SVA in New York, initially part time evenings, then in the BFA program. I realized that the art world really only considers people in their twenties and early thirties so it might have been easier to get noticed younger. SVA gave no advice as to how to pursue a career in the arts. After SVA we moved to Hong Kong where I got an MFA at RMIT and HK Art School. I wish I had started sooner so that I could have developed a career sooner. I also wish that art schools did more to help students understand how to navigate this world. Of course I am not sure the teachers really want the students to be able to navigate it because students are potential rivals.I wish I had known earlier what I am learning now. I laugh that I am so old now that maybe there’s a chance to be noticed as an older artist.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a visual artist who didn’t start out with the intention of becoming an artist, but rather slipped into it because of circumstances. I was writing a doctoral dissertation, a very isolated activity. To have more social contacts, I started drawing classes, then painting, followed by sculpture and printmaking. Artmaking took over. I went to New York from Switzerland to get a BFA at the School of Visual Arts. I continued in Hong Kong by getting an MFA at a joint program of RMIT and the Hong Kong School of Art. I continue working both in Malaysia and in Switzerland Personal experience has led me to the address issues of power dynamics in my art. I don’t think art solves problems as such, but it can raise people’s awareness of problems we all face. It can also be therapeutical if it helps us realize that we are not alone, that we share interests and concerns with other people. “Just” viewing art can act as therapy by calming us, and forcing our minds to go beyond our immediate concerns to consider other things. I know I feel soothed by going to galleries and museums, even if I don’t like the work I am looking at.
I like art that provokes a strong emotional response, that has a strong impact. This is what I am looking for when I create a piece of work. I want the viewer to feel the emotion behind the creation.

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Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

I think art schools should do a much better job of discussing how to navigate the art world. There was nothing like that when I was there. It’s possible they do some now. There was no guidance on how to get your art seen or what steps to take to get work into galleries. I sometimes think they didn’t want us to know because we were potential rivals.

Now there seem to be many advisors with programs on how to write an artist statement and bio, how to do your website and how to gain followers on Instagram. I do some of these. I wish I had known about them earlier or that they existed earlier.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

I think the creative process is a huge mystery for non-creatives. I hesitate to use the term non-creative because I think creativity takes many forms and some of those who consider themselves non-creative are in fact very much so. It is a curious process. For me it takes starting with something and then a variation will just occur. For example I painted a dramatic sunset that I found uninteresting and that did not address my theme of power dynamics. I thought of painting a window frame so you would have the impression of looking out on this scene. Then I thought would it be a more powerful image if it was the old-fashioned small panes like a double triangle. That gave me the idea of a chain link fence. Bingo! I think I found a solution to a work I found boring. Often a mistake will lead to something interesting. I was painting piles of fruits or vegetables from photos of market displays. I was using conti crayon.By accident I splashed water on a piece which caused the conti crayon to run down the paper in drips. The effect was great. I was at the same time painting on sheer curtain fabric. I like layering so I layered the fabric on top of the drawings by have them framed with fabric instead of glass. If you’re working, ideas just come.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.vickigenberg.com
• Instagram: @vickigenberg
• Facebook: https://facebook>victoriagenberg
• Linkedin: https://linkedin.com>victoriagenberg

Image Credits
me!