Remember a few years back seeing a taped seminar of a panel discussion, a back and forth between artists and businessmen organized by some civic-minded organization in a large city. Everyone spoke english but there was no translation. So while the business people talked supply and demand, the artist in the fedora was saying, ‘so you have to decide, do you want to make art, do you want to make stuff that looks like art, or do you just want to make stuff that looks good?’ The business types shrugged and looked perplexed, and the artists wondered where’s lunch. It didn’t seem to go anywhere.
Have known talented visionary artists who were lousy at business, and taken advantage of on a regular basis, it’s a tough reality. There’s a reason for this. Art and business come close to being polar opposites, venn diagrams that don’t touch, mentalities that won’t mingle. The most basic business model says, give up as little as possible to get the most back, and the product isn’t that important. Could be fast food, could be real-estate, so long as it’s legal we’re in, don’t want to go to jail. Artists don’t think that way. The artists wonders, ‘how dark can I make the shadows, how green can I make the face, do these clouds look believable,’ such as that.
Artists are at a disadvantage, but without some business sense they won’t last long. Signing big contracts and landing huge commissions aren’t as immediate as negotiating rent, buying safe tires, staying dressed and fed. Old cars are going to need repairs, tenant plumbing can be undependable, and two dollars less for the same tube of paint is worth telling a friend about. Some business acumen comes in handy. Still that basic equation, buy cheap and sell dear, sounds foreign to an artist. The independent artist, living out beyond institutional support, probably knows the hourly price of labor, and would be perfectly happy with even up. Selling enough to support a modest household can be a nagging concern, but the serious artist keeps it separate.
The artist picks an audience and works for them, alone in a studio. Will there ever be a connection -- time will tell. This is a long road across a desert with foggy mountains up ahead, get trekking. A shortcut is possible, traversing the razor thin sophistication of granting agencies and shiny magazines, the kind found in online push reviews reeking of skyrocketing prices. Just find out what’s going on in NY this season and wait five years, it's like robbery. If the artist wants to address a broader audience, anyone with a similar general experience, maybe just alive on earth at this moment, good luck. They better find a better businessperson than they are to hold their hand.
Have known talented visionary artists who were lousy at business, and taken advantage of on a regular basis, it’s a tough reality. There’s a reason for this. Art and business come close to being polar opposites, venn diagrams that don’t touch, mentalities that won’t mingle. The most basic business model says, give up as little as possible to get the most back, and the product isn’t that important. Could be fast food, could be real-estate, so long as it’s legal we’re in, don’t want to go to jail. Artists don’t think that way. The artists wonders, ‘how dark can I make the shadows, how green can I make the face, do these clouds look believable,’ such as that.
Artists are at a disadvantage, but without some business sense they won’t last long. Signing big contracts and landing huge commissions aren’t as immediate as negotiating rent, buying safe tires, staying dressed and fed. Old cars are going to need repairs, tenant plumbing can be undependable, and two dollars less for the same tube of paint is worth telling a friend about. Some business acumen comes in handy. Still that basic equation, buy cheap and sell dear, sounds foreign to an artist. The independent artist, living out beyond institutional support, probably knows the hourly price of labor, and would be perfectly happy with even up. Selling enough to support a modest household can be a nagging concern, but the serious artist keeps it separate.
The artist picks an audience and works for them, alone in a studio. Will there ever be a connection -- time will tell. This is a long road across a desert with foggy mountains up ahead, get trekking. A shortcut is possible, traversing the razor thin sophistication of granting agencies and shiny magazines, the kind found in online push reviews reeking of skyrocketing prices. Just find out what’s going on in NY this season and wait five years, it's like robbery. If the artist wants to address a broader audience, anyone with a similar general experience, maybe just alive on earth at this moment, good luck. They better find a better businessperson than they are to hold their hand.
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