I would love to go on some kind of massive research expedition to explore this very question. I want to know details about how other artists are making ends meet and making things work. I don’t know if it’s for commiseration or inspiration, or purely because no one ever talks about it. It was an unmentionable even in my grad school program, this “how to survive” issue. Is it because you don’t? Or at least not by doing art? I’ve heard “There’s always teaching,” but really there isn’t. Teaching art at the college level is extremely competitive, and in order to get a stable teaching job, MFA graduates must first be willing to (typically) move anywhere in the country to adjunct part-time at near-poverty wages.
{Jennifer Dalton, How Do Artists Live? 20-image slide show, detail, 2006}
Unless they are independently wealthy, artists have “day jobs,” right? As I’ve waded through several career crises in the past ten years, I’ve gathered that some day jobs seem to be more valuable than others, regardless of the income they yield. They have a higher romance factor, thereby enhancing the perception of the art career. Like: Zookeeper, Baker, Fireman, Roofer, Hair Stylist. Then, other jobs seem like they would actually hinder an artist’s standing: Therapist, Nurse, Accountant, High School History Teacher. Is manual labor somehow better for the artist’s reputation? Is it the same for men as for women? Would it be cool to be a mailman delivering mail, but uncool to work in the post office proper? Does anyone know what I’m talking about?
How do you pay your bills?
Has having a child helped or hurt your art career?
Do your parents give you money?
Is there a day job you’d like to have, but haven’t pursued because it wouldn’t “look good?”
Do you like your day job? How did you get it?
{Jennifer Dalton, How Do Artists Live? 20-image slide show, installed at Winkleman Gallery, 2006}
