The New Brunswick Arts Board is an arm’s length arts funding agency with a legislated mandate to facilitate and promote the creation of art as well as administering funding programs for professional artists in the province.
Hi, everyone! My name is Emily and I am the 2018 Student Intern at artsnb. I moved to Fredericton in 2014 to study at St. Thomas University, where I just graduated this year with a BA in English Literature and Communications & Public Policy. In September, I’ll be starting my MA in Social Justice and Community Engagement at Wilfrid Laurier University. Here are some quick facts about me!
I am thrilled to be working at artsnb this summer and have had an incredibly positive experience so far. After being here for almost two months, I have learned so much more about the New Brunswick arts community and I have thoroughly enjoyed working with the amazing staff, who are all so dedicated to supporting New Brunswick artists. One of my favourite things about working at artsnb is that I feel consistently inspired to work harder at my own art and further develop my own practice.
At artsnb, I am putting my Communications degree to great use by designing some creative headers for the posts on the artsnb blog, helping with the Annual Report content, and working on a communications plan. However, my favourite project to date has been developing an animated video to explain the grant application process. Hopefully, this video will help artists learn more about the amazing grant programs offered at artsnb and will be an informative tool to use going forward!
I grew up in the small town of Hampton, New Brunswick, where I developed my own creative passions at a young age. Looking back, this comes as no surprise, seeing as I was surrounded by creative people every day. My parents are both musicians, which inspired me to take piano lessons from my mother for several years before moving on to teaching myself how to play guitar. I spent a large part of my life taking dance lessons and even took part in a couple Atlantic Canadian competitions—the most exciting of which being in the fourth grade, when my dance troupe won a gold medal for a tap dance performance, sporting sparkly dresses and embellished pink cowgirl hats, nonetheless. I’ve also spent a lot of time drawing and painting, but my first true love will always be writing. Ever since I was a little girl, I have been fascinated by creating stories and dreaming of fictional worlds inside my head. Growing up, my parents wisely instilled in me a fond love of Disney movies, so watching characters like Ariel, Belle, Eeyore, and even Donald Duck made me want to imagine fun characters of my own. My dream has always been to publish a novel and I hope that one day it will come true!
Currently, you can find me getting creative by knitting or crocheting everything from warm winter hats to pot cozies for my many houseplants (I have ten in my room alone!) My grandmother taught me to knit when I was young, and it has become one of my favourite pastimes. When I’m not starting a new project on my needles or crochet hook, I am usually curled up with a good book or re-watching Friends—I can confirm that all my mail comes addressed to me and not to “Miss Chanandler Bong,” although Chandler is definitely my favourite character on the show.
If I had to pick an artistic role model or inspiration, it would probably be John Green. His novels are some of my favourites and I love that even though he typically writes for a young adult audience, there is something to be learned from his stories for people of all ages. I feel inspired by his passion for creativity and the authenticity of his writing. In my opinion, he is an absolute rockstar.
Working at artsnb has been a wonderful part of my summer. I’m so happy to be learning more about the New Brunswick arts community and I’m grateful that I get to work with such a fun, dedicated, and welcoming staff. I’m looking forward to the rest of my time here and I plan on taking the creative inspiration that I have received from this experience into all that comes next.