Careers For Boys And Girls

Chronicle (Levin), 1 May 1948, Page 3

Careers For Boys And Girls

This is the ftnal article in the series dealing with suitable careers for boys and girls about to leave school. Commercial Art Qualifications: Distinct ability in art work is essential. •Training: A thorough grounding in an art school or course is the first stage, follow.ed hy further study and practice after employment is found. The job: Window dressing and showcard writing in the larger stores'is usually done by men who, having worked as assistants m the shop, show ability for 'display work. Advertising agencies provide drawings for advertisements in newspapers and magazines and on posters. Lithographers employ artists to reproduce draw'ings. Prospects: There are very f.ew artists employed in /the agencies in New Zealand and so prospects are limited. Some of the fields open are: — Advertising and poster work: Outstanding talent is necessary to gain employment in an advertising agency. In any case openings are limited, and generally men are employed as artists. Transfer work is sometimes available and woul'd enclude copyiiig and designing commercial crests and badges, lettering and drawing flowers and animals. Here again openings are limited as there are only a few firms in New Zealand carrying out this work. Some of the big drapery firms employ artists to illustrate fashions for newspaper advertisements and to do display work, but most frequently employees are required as ticket writers an'd showcard decorators, doing work which requires neatness and precision, but little or no creative effort. Window dressing and display work: ,This work entails not only artistic ability, an eye for colour, design and line, harmony and form, but also the capadi-ty to work as a screen-shifter and carpenter, as an effectiv.e display often involves a carefully constructed framework. This must be taken into account by pupils who hope" to use their artistic talent in this way, as the work may be heavy and exhausting. Window display is often combined with work as a shop-assistant. Up to five years' training may be necessary foefore one becomes fully competent. Interior decorating: This work is best approached by becoming an assistant in the furnishing department of a shop, and there acquiring knowledge of the quality and cost of materials and furniture. School of art training is desirable, as a sense of colour and design is necessary, and this should be combined with the study of periods and styles, and of modern trends abroad. Correspondence courses from England and America are available. Experience in display work and window dressing is also valuable. At present openings in this work are not numerous, but a student whods sufficiently keen can aim at becoming a buyer in a furnishing department, where she is also able to advise customers and make suggestions. Dress designing: In New Zealand this is usually combined with dress making, the designer being very often head of a workroom." As inost of the designs are copied from imported fashion magazines and the patterns cut from these, a talent for drawing is necessary, but there is ^little scope for originality. Under peacetime conditions model frocks are generally imported from abroad, and the frocks made are modelled on imported designs and involve- no creative work. An ambitious girl with artistic ability, as well as originality and keen observation, should set out to learn dressmaking by becoming an apprentice, and should concentrate.on learning all about textiles. School of art training is an asset also. She may then find an opening in a clothing manufacturing firm, where it may be possible for her to introduce some of her own ideas. General: Certain branches of art work such as illustrating children's books and drawing cover designs cannot -be treated fully here, as the scope is extremely limited in this country, exeept in the case of those with outstanding talent. A word of caution must be added. Conditions for the practice of any branch of commercial art are likely to change enormously. While there may be further developments in some dir.ections, in others the possibilities of finding. interesting work may diminish steadily, so that students who hope to follow a career in art should be prepared for difflculties. Talent, combined with energy, however, is the chief factor in success.