February 2019 www.womanthismonth.com 20 showcase A WOMAN’S CANVAS Imtiaz for Her Hosts speaks to two prominent female artists about the role of art in commerce. Hosts What do you see as the place of art within a business/commercial landscape? We already have creativity within a lot of businesses, for example advertising agencies creating commercials which need costume designers, actors, makeup artists, set designers, painters, writers; they’re about putting on a show, regardless of the products [whether for video or static] it takes in a lot of the creative fields and integrates them. I feel that there is already a place for art within the business/commercial landscape, but its not given proper recognition or worth yet, it's about recognising talents and placing them in their right field, it's about hiring a creative rather than another business or marketing representative. Creativity has been identified as one of the top five ‘soft skills’ that employers will be seeking in 2019. Is this a teachable skill? And how do you believe creativity can be developed and channelled into an employment/ business skill? I believe creative thinking is already applied in all fields and not just art – it could be any field: doctors, magistrates, engineers. If you keep following the same rules you will be stuck in a loop. It’s about ,knowing when you need to change things. We’ve already spoken about how creativity can be channelled commercially, and this is clearly something more corporates are going to be looking for. What advice would you give to other female artists hoping to get into the market? First, when going in to any field make sure you’re choosing it for the right reasons, never let money be your first incentive, because you will definitely find yourself in hard times, Build yourself or find a community in which you can communicate with other creatives, where you can tell them about your journey and learn about those of others. RAMAH AL HUSSEINI Studio Artist
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