“sure, why not?” [the story]
not available [canvas is in the process of being upcycled into something new]
this project was done primarily as a personal exploration to tell a visual story
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“sure, why not?”
mixed media on an upcycled wood frame
46x42 inches
about work as we once knew it and work as it is today with changing tech. it shines a light on opportunity and the future of work and subtly suggests it may be more about community, belonging, connection than anything. we never know where opportunity may lead… but the light inside doesn’t lie.
we were told finding work and a career was simple:
go to school or do training for something of interest and get a job in exactly what we are trained in. back then, we’d walk in and drop off a resume or maybe submit it online or through email, a person would look at it shortly after, we’d have one 30-60 minute interview with a simple follow up call a week or so later and if we were lucky, we would soon be on our way to a good life with a pension plan and paid vacation days. we’ll keep on at this job, climb this corporate ladder in a nice, orderly fashion, and be set for life.
this is what i was told.
this is no longer the way it is.
yet for some reason many organizations are still operating as if this is the way that it is, having applicants apply for a new job in old, tired system and it’s creating friction to the hiring process. both parties are frustrated.
we’re tired of being rejected by non-humans with no feedback. entering the same information that’s already on our resume into form fields over and over again. writing ‘authentic’ cover letters in the hopes of being seen as a person.
is this all worth it?
sure, it might be. it might give you a good life… until they do another round of budget cuts and it might just be you on the chopping block this time. the years you dedicated to this job you fought so hard to get, poof, gone.
what if…
…we started thinking outside the box when it comes to looking for work and seeking workers? with how we should be treating work and what it should be, for our own sanity and health, if nothing else?
what if we loved our jobs? what if we never said “i have to work” but instead “i get to work”? young people today are probably going to be working until we die at this rate, so we might as well love it.
what if the corporate ladder didn’t exist? what if nobody cared about career gaps on resumes? what if we didn’t put our entire sense of self worth into our career and how much money we made and instead we actually found meaningful work that brings us joy? what if everyone had their basic needs met so we didn’t need to work at jobs we hate just for a ‘better life’?
maybe there’s a better way to do all this than we ever imagined… maybe we just need to think outside the traditional cubical, for once.
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the process:
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final look:
i showed this at the riversdale art walk in saskatoon at saskatoon makerspace at the end of 2025.
makerspace typically dims the lights for events with hanging patio lights so in addition to that, i hung flashlights on either side of the canvas to move the lights around to see all the details as an immersive treasure hunt experience.
