Current Tufts student Sophie Feinstein shared the following about being a Summer Intern at NWA Studios …
What did you do as an intern at this organization?
I assisted the artist, Noel W. Anderson, in the fabrication of works for his two upcoming exhibitions this fall. He taught me his techniques for textile manipulation and art-making, and I worked alongside him in the studio to create his large-scale textile works.
How did you find this internship?
Noel Anderson is a professor at NYU, who I met when I was in high school during an NYU summer art intensive. We have kept in touch over the years, and last January I reached out and asked if he was looking for summer assistants in his studio in New York City.
What did you enjoy most about your internship?
Working with the artist himself! It is a great privilege to have access to a working professional’s studio space and expertise, and I learned a great deal about networking within the art world as well as expanding my own technical skill.
What did you find challenging?
Getting on my boss’s calendar; my internship was largely self-lead beyond the initial meeting and teaching of studio practices, so I had to be assertive in asking Noel for meeting times to discuss my internship’s progress, ask questions, and touch base in general. He was always responsive when I did ask, but it was a lesson in the importance of reminding your superiors of your own needs.
What advice would you offer to someone who wants to make the most of an internship like yours?
Keep an open mind, and be flexible. Working directly under an artist means adapting to and being respectful of their own practices and space, figuratively and literally. At times, your boss may want to work with you in the studio, and at others they may want to work alone. Take every opportunity as it comes and see them as learning experiences!
About the Organization
Anderson utilizes print-media and arts-based-research to explore philosophical inquiry methodologies. He primarily focuses on the mediation of socially constructed images on identity formation as it relates to black masculinity and celebrity.
