That time someone amazing found me through a "#"

Post 7/50

Documenting my career transition on LinkedIn has proven to be a very good idea. When I have conversations with people in the art industry, having these articles cements the fact that I am serious and committed to the move. Furthermore, it enables others who have questions or are in a position to assist me to find me.

Precisely that happened to me at the end of August, when I was approached by Lucy Standing of www.viewvo.com offering me the opportunity to become a work case study for their unique shadowing service and thus gain experience with an employer I would otherwise have no access to.

Lucy found me through a hashtag on LinkedIn.

This is what ViewVo offer (in my words):

When one needs a professional service that they do not have experience in, they hire an expert. Perhaps it could be the same when it comes to gaining an honest and practical insight into an industry one is considering working in but in which one struggles to find contacts. Not everyone has the time or networking skills to go to professional events where one just might meet the right contact. Some people have children, jobs at odd hours and a multitude of other impediments.

Hiring managers sometimes get hundreds of applications for a role and often would love to give feedback to every candidate that put an effort in, but ultimately have to swiftly complete the actual hiring process, whilst simultaneously focusing on their day to day business.

Queue Viewvo: where people seeking a specific insight into the realities of their dream career path can pay for conversations/shadowing/practical experience with successful professionals and businesses (that are scouted and carefully vetted).

The money raised by Viewvo either supports the small business or is donated by the expert to charity.

Despite being a relatively new service, they have several case studies and some very cool and exclusive professionals on board.

I am going to be featured on their website as one of their case studies because they gave me the opportunity to have my first ever shadowing / work experience / mentorship in a busy London Art Gallery, an experience that has already produced tangible outcomes for me.

3 Days at the Nelly Duff Gallery:

From day 1 I actively took part in and observed the day to day tasks: shipping prints, framing consultations, presentation of space, customer interactions online and face to face, etc. Furthermore, I got to help out in getting everything ready for a launch event for a new edition of prints by one of the brilliant urban artists Nelly Duff are working with.

As well as helping and learning on the job, I had a 1 on 1 session that lasted hours with their hiring manager, Bee. We did a type of mock interview, discussed my CV and a few cover letters, as well as a Q&A. The depth of the feedback and advice was incredible.

I made friends with the whole team there and was delighted to see the launch event come together the way it did. A huge thank you to Bee, who connected with ViewVo and was instrumental in making this experience possible.

Here are my key takeaways from those days:

- I got a clear idea of which of my skills were transferable and important to emphasise in an application to an art gallery role. There were things I had completely overlooked that I now know make a difference.

- I got taught how to prep an exhibition space and got an insight into how one professionally displays works.

- I gained hands on experience wrapping and handling framed and unframed prints.

- I learned how art cards are made and some of the security measures involved in displaying works in a gallery.

- I discovered that the type of people galleries hire are those that follow the gallery, go to their events and are part of their scene. It's not about connexions, it's about going old-school, face to face, and really personalising your application. I can really get behind this. It made me think "what type of gallery would I actually fit into", being that I am a well-spoken fine-art type, who is also a goth and a Sales and Customer Services professional.

- I got confirmation that it is genuinely OK to take irrelevant work experience off your CV if you don't have huge gaps in it as a result. I have been a workaholic for years, juggling multiple jobs and side-hustles. My CV is a lot to cram into 2 pages. Bee helped me prioritise more ruthlessly.

- I noted that there is a shortage of people who want to work in the art world who also might like to work in sales.

Job applications and call back from a gallery:

I started proactively applying for jobs in galleries and museums. I focused on quality of applications rather than quantity using each cover letter as practice.

Every time I got a rejection e-mail, I wrote back asking for feedback and explaining the journey I am on. And most of the time I got a reply with very direct and useful feedback like:

"[your] application did not outline examples of previous experience of cash-handling procedures (daily cashing in/out), key-holder responsibilities or familiarity with computerised ticketing systems"

I can learn from this and do better next time.

The confidence and insights I got at Nelly Duff empowered me to home in on my unique selling points as a candidate.

It is quite a powerful thing to actually be able to say when applying to a junior gallery role that you have recent experience in that role and environment and are aware of the day to day reality of that type of business (i.e. reassuring a potential employer that you are not romanticizing the role and you want it for what it is).

To my absolute delight, I had a call back from an application I submitted to an art gallery in central London. I have now passed the telephone interview stage and have been invited for a face to face in a few days. I will post an update on this once I have the outcome of this process, regardless of how it goes.

Update: I did not get the job, but the feedback was positive and encouraging.

If you work with or run an art-related organisation in the UK and would have advice or time to meet/speak with a career changer like me, please contact me on [email protected] or connect with me on here. I would love to hear from you.