My interivew with Cara McCarty taught me how curiosity and exploring different forms of art can help shape someone’s path in the arts. By learning how she stayed determined to pursue art history and museum work, even when people told her there were no available jobs, it showed me the importance of following your passions and creating your own opportunities.
When did you know that you wanted to pursue a career in art? And why?
I always did art growing up. My mother wanted us to do all types of things. It was a very well-rounded upbringing. I took art classes and I did a lot of sewing. When I was in fifth grade, I wanted to make my own clothes, so my mother enrolled me in a sewing class. They were all grown women but me, and I began making my own outfits.
Then in junior high, I got very interested in weaving, and I made my own backstrap loom. My parents took us to lots of museums. When I returned to the United States in September to start college, I decided I wanted to major in art and art history.
My teachers and professors in art history all said, “Don’t even think of museum work because there are no jobs.” But I was determined.
What did your high school or middle school do to cultivate your interest in art?
I went to terrific public schools in California, and they had wonderful classes beyond just the traditional high school classes. They had a great art programs in which they offered art, photography and an art history class. So I took art history and I took art.
Every year in the spring they had electives, and you could choose to do something that was beyond your main area of interest. There was a lot of freedom there. It was unusual at that time for a school to offer art history, even today.
I was very fortunate, but I also did things on the weekends. As I mentioned, I was curious about weaving, so I made my own backstrap loom and tied it to a chair. I made pillows to give as gifts. I also took a weaving class on a big loom at the local community center.
So what’s not offered at your own school, you should supplement with what you’re interested in. If you’re really interested in learning something, you find a way.
Who or what had the most significant influence upon you along the way?
I have to credit my parents. Early on, my parents fostered independence. They wanted us to learn how to rely on ourselves and to be confident in ourselves, and not be dependent on validation from the outside.
So who cares if you’re popular or not in school? It’s more important to know who you are and be able to rely on yourself. You develop into a more interesting individual and follow your interests.
My parents exposed us to so much. They didn’t have a lot of money, but when we traveled, and it was very simple travel, we went to museums and learned history. They wanted to expose us to different cultures and to appreciate what we had, but also to see how other people are.
I had some good teachers along the way, but when I started at the Museum of Modern Art, I had a fabulous boss who was a mentor. I thank him every week. I couldn’t have gotten into that position without having the support of my family.
You can’t take it for granted. Once you go out into the real world and leave the comfort and safety of your home, you will be grateful that your parents will be there for you wherever you are in the world.
What roles do you think schools should play in fostering art education and appreciation?
Art is really, really important, especially these days with so much emphasis on computers and digital media and everybody holding their iPhones. We still need to find ways to foster creativity and creative ways of thinking, and to learn how to think outside the box.
For instance, the artist Sheila Hicks never goes directly to a solution. If you are in a meeting with her and everybody thinks they’re about to decide on something, she’ll come in from left field and shake it up so that people are not always in their comfort zone.
There’s not always one solution or one answer. She’s made me a better thinker, even at my age.
She said she learned this from Josef Albers. She would paint an abstract canvas thinking this is the bottom and this is the top. But Albers would say, “Turn it on its side. What does it look like? Turn it upside down. What does it look like?” Don’t always enter the house through the front door, go in through the side door or the back door.
Students sometimes think they’re bad at art because from elementary school they are taught to think that way. Kids give up and think they’re not good artists anymore. But actually, many people are very creative, and schools sometimes shut that down.
Art is a wonderful way of helping us look at the world more carefully.
How concerned are you about the impact from cuts in funding to the arts, particularly in schools?
Oh, I’m concerned. I’m very concerned.
What is your advice for people like me who want to study art in college and potentially build a career in the arts?
First of all, you already have an asset because you are very artistically talented, so play that up.
I think you should start trying to get internships and volunteer opportunities. Being a student is the best passport you can have. Use this summer, or even during the school year, to volunteer at museums.
See if there are internships or volunteer opportunities working with a curator. Once you start college, it becomes easier to do that.
Many schools have great art museums. Whether it’s a famous museum or not, use those opportunities. At some point, go abroad. If you choose to major in art history, spend at least a semester abroad.
I spent two quarters in France when I was a junior in college, and I learned decent French. When you are young it is much easier to learn a foreign language. It is also important because you are exposed to different museums and different cultures.
You have to keep finding ways to differentiate yourself from your competition because there is a lot of competition to work in the arts.
Who is your favorite artist and why?
I can’t tell you. There are too many. The answer could change tomorrow or two weeks from now. The more I look, the more my favorites change.
Some artists who were my favorites many years ago I still like, but they are not necessarily my favorite artists today. I appreciate all types of art and architecture.
Artists like Picasso discovered African art in the early twentieth century and it had a huge influence on their artwork.
Try drawing them sometime, and also try drawing reflective objects like glass bottles. They are not easy to draw, but they are good practice.
