{"id":14616,"date":"2021-01-29T02:16:45","date_gmt":"2021-01-29T02:16:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/?p=14616"},"modified":"2021-01-29T14:20:18","modified_gmt":"2021-01-29T14:20:18","slug":"the-changing-workplace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/?p=14616","title":{"rendered":"the changing workplace &#8230;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-0 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em>The Court Painter Studio Enterprise is perfectly aware that the majority of subscribers prefer 140-280 characters of text to hold their attention., however for the historical record it is necessary to test the limits of that textual endurance and launch into a fulsome description of the significant change in  Court Painter&#8217;s  2021 workplace direction for revving up the studio to maximize profits<\/em> <em>and avoid hedge fund vultures!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>For those who just like to look at pictures, Press Attache and prodigious picture picker A Hardon MacKay , has made a selection of outstanding past commissions meant<\/em> <em>to sooth the eye and create envy in the competition.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-style-default\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"693\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-serinade.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14728\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-serinade.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-serinade-300x208.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-serinade-768x532.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><figcaption>Calgary power couple entertaining at home.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>A<\/strong> <strong>glance<\/strong> into the Court Painter&#8217;s studio a little past 6 am in the year 2021 : Fashionably masked staff arrive by a studio-sponsored Harley with a side car that features cushioned banana seats and Wi-Fi; acoustically accompanied by the familiar yet distinct boss throb of unmuffled cylinders. As unpaid studio interns social distance in single file, they are wearing weekend casual khaki, plaid jumpers and camouflage clamdiggers, even though it is a Wednesday. The studio kitchenette has green juice and kombucha growlers, which are free, as are breakfast pop up tarts and lunch in a cup. The studio is lined with easels and screens where remote portrait subjects  pop up as talking heads. The Court Painter ,with his designer scarf flowing in the breeze, imperiously roller skates past everyone. Then everyone scrambles to find an easel\u2014no one has assigned easels here\u2014  paintboxes are put down, and freshly cleaned painters smocks whipped from designer back packs are donned and finally over-the-ear headphones, and turn up the EDM to tune out the world for the next 12 hours. Everyone to a person knows they are part of a fresh art world and <em>crushing<\/em> it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Sounds<\/strong> <strong>like<\/strong> Silicon Valley circa 2009, right? Well, surprise\u2014this is the Court Painter Studio Enterprise in early 2021. More and more studios are adopting the art work culture invented by the technology upstarts. These are not the studios where Frieda Kahlo or  The Painter of Light worked, clocking out at 5 sharp, eyeballing the corner easel. There <em>is<\/em> no corner easel here\u2014just \u201ccreative hot spots\u201d and open floor plans, wide as the prairie outside the window.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Court Painter&#8217;s<\/strong> studio used to be a sweat shop, but at least it had a clear purpose. You wouldn\u2019t hang ou<em>t<\/em> next to your easel, let alone spend time there on the weekends. Then companies like Google came along and reinvented the rat race into something with purpose and, along the way, confused work with the rest of life. Now, your fellow unpaid studio interns are supposed to feel like members of a <em>tribe.<\/em> Hierarchies have been flattened, conventional job titles replaced by ones like \u201cBanksy\u201d and \u201cFreida.\u201d The vacation days are unlimited (not that unpaid studio interns ever take them). And forget about work-life balance. It\u2019s all about work-life integration<em>.<\/em> Why else would the studio  have on-site vending machines next to the nap pods with a choice of low fat nachos, organic snack boxes and $1 a bag  sea salt popcorn after 7 pm?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>These<\/strong> <strong>fanciful<\/strong> ideas were meant to liberate unpaid studio interns from the drudgery of the studio where they produce all the work and get zero credit. (that is an expose waiting to happen) Instead, Silicon Valley ruined work culture\u2014not just for people in tech but for Court Painter&#8217;s studio. (which  has an open washroom, a bring-your-low fat hot dog-to-work policy, and a cook book by the microwave where all<em> bring your own<\/em> food is free.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The hallmarks<\/strong> of Silicon Valley work culture have now spread. Court Painter&#8217;s studio has its own in-office escape room full of paint by number sets and ready for team-building exercises. It has a slide that runs between the studio floor and the outside alley\u2014in addition to the requisite Ping-Pong, foosball, and pool tables. There is a built-in meditation space, an on-call masseuse for relief from the long hours sitting at an easel, stretching canvas or cleaning brushes. Then there are the seemingly generous policies around vacation days and time off where unpaid studio interns are given the option to take two unpaid Fridays off per month . This is not just to be nice. \u201cWe think we&#8217;ll get a productivity lift from this perk,&#8221; A Hardon MacKay, the studio&#8217;s administrative human relations officer, whispered beyond earshot of the nosy staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Court Painter<\/strong> Studio Enterprise has continued to modernize by modelling itself after a tech company, including a shift toward the agile methodology favoured in the Valley. \u201cI have made trips to Silicon Valley, to meet with founders and investors in innovation,\u201d says A Hardon MacKay. \u201cI&#8217;ve  brought back workplace ideas that have revolutionized our art studio practice. This has assured Court Painter can have liquid lunches and afternoon naps without being harassed by disgruntled unpaid studio interns looking for guidance on every paint stroke.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>According to<\/strong> <strong>AHM<\/strong> these workplace changes are necessary to feed the insatiable ever expanding celebrity and political portrait commission juggernaut. A  juggernaut that mostly hedge fund clients continue to feed in their belief in the investment value of Court Painter&#8217;s work backed by the marketing savvy of his trusty sidekick A Hardon MacKay. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"727\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/guardians.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14715\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/guardians.jpg 727w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/guardians-273x300.jpg 273w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 984px) 61vw, (max-width: 1362px) 45vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"714\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/The-Donald-art-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14719\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/The-Donald-art-copy.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/The-Donald-art-copy-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/The-Donald-art-copy-768x548.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"714\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Gallery-guards.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14714\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Gallery-guards.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Gallery-guards-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Gallery-guards-768x548.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"829\" height=\"750\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-GO-TO-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14705\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-GO-TO-1.jpg 829w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-GO-TO-1-300x271.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-GO-TO-1-768x695.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 984px) 61vw, (max-width: 1362px) 45vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"857\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Donald-no-bottom.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14713\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Donald-no-bottom.jpg 800w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Donald-no-bottom-280x300.jpg 280w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Donald-no-bottom-768x823.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 984px) 61vw, (max-width: 1362px) 45vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"750\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Court-Painter-Doug-Covid.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14327\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Court-Painter-Doug-Covid.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Court-Painter-Doug-Covid-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Court-Painter-Doug-Covid-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"901\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/JT-getting-CP-advice.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-13451\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/JT-getting-CP-advice.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/JT-getting-CP-advice-300x270.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/JT-getting-CP-advice-768x692.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"820\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Court-Painter-Rona.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12864\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Court-Painter-Rona.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Court-Painter-Rona-300x246.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Court-Painter-Rona-768x630.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"631\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/begone-2-copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12780\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/begone-2-copy.jpg 631w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/begone-2-copy-237x300.jpg 237w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 984px) 61vw, (max-width: 1362px) 45vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"714\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-Tactical-fashion-Ivanka.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14905\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-Tactical-fashion-Ivanka.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-Tactical-fashion-Ivanka-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-Tactical-fashion-Ivanka-768x548.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"549\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-Pandemic-fantasy-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14666\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-Pandemic-fantasy-1.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-Pandemic-fantasy-1-300x165.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Court-Painter-Pandemic-fantasy-1-768x422.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"750\" src=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Court-Painter-anti-mask.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14502\" srcset=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Court-Painter-anti-mask.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Court-Painter-anti-mask-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Court-Painter-anti-mask-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 85vw, (max-width: 909px) 67vw, (max-width: 1362px) 62vw, 840px\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Court Painter Studio Enterprise is perfectly aware that the majority of subscribers prefer 140-280 characters of text to hold their attention., however for the historical record it is necessary to test the limits of that textual endurance and launch into a fulsome description of the significant change in Court Painter&#8217;s 2021 workplace direction for &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/?p=14616\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;the changing workplace &#8230;&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14616","post","type-post","status-publish","format-gallery","hentry","category-images","post_format-post-format-gallery"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14616","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14616"}],"version-history":[{"count":64,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14616\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19887,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14616\/revisions\/19887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14616"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14616"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/allanhardingmackay.ca\/courtpainter\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14616"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}