May 2002
by Robert Maniscalco

If I never hear the expression, "starving artist" again it won't be soon enough for me. The old scarcity paradigm that says there is only so much wealth, recognition, talent -- you name it -- to go around, is due for a serious overhaul. The idea that the world is a big pie with only so many slices -- or shares – still seems to dominate the thinking of our arts community. The question is this: are full self-expression and financial success really mutually exclusive? I'm sick of the people who believe that if an artist is able to sell his/her work then they are commercial sell-outs. There is no more market driven vocation in the world than that of a fine artist.

Let's start with the most basic reason artists create in the first place -- to express their unique experience of humanity. The question is why? Or more to the point, why bother? The answer is that we must. But why MUST we express? The reason is that in any society there are a few among us who feel the need to connect their experience of the world with others. I don't buy it when an artist says he has culled his most precious ideas into being, only to please himself. Certainly, artists must effectively communicate their ideas to others if they are to survive as professionals.

I may be overly dependant on what people think of me -- and believe me, I have received considerable therapy on this issue -- but I don't see the point of getting out of bed, if not to make some kind of an impact on, and be impacted by, other human beings. So if we accept that artists are those who have found a way to effectively express themselves to others, then we must also accept that professional artists are subject to the same economics inherent in all human interaction. No man is an island.

The arts community has devised many ways to insulate itself from the "free" market. Some seek the security of academia, where tenured professors are paid by idealistic students to teach them not to expect to make a living as an artist for fear of corrupting the purity of their expression. Easy for them, they have a job! Another insulating institution is the non-profit system, which makes government or private funding available to artists pursuing ostensibly "non-commercial" projects. I'm not saying for a minute that academia or the non-profit sector is not enormously important in our society. The point is that in whatever system we chose to operate -- whether academia, non-profit, commercial art or working with a gallery -- professional artists must play the game of obtaining recognition, grants, commissions, awards and yes, sales.

I believe it is our failure to communicate the importance of the arts in our society that keeps artists "starving." It astounds me when artists themselves romanticize the notion of the "starving artist." If we don't begin to reverse our own attitudes that art is not really an essential part of the human experience then we are destined to remain on the short end of the economic stick. We artists need to value -- and educate others to value -- our creativity if we want to thrive. Creative people must stop short-selling their God-given gifts. That means reaching out to others with our talent and commanding respect. We must get into the arena and master the game if we are going to call ourselves professionals. Get that PhD, learn to write an award-winning grant, knock the socks off an art gallery, hone your creative voice and master your craft. But first be an artist who needs people.

It's easy to give our talent away and gripe about how little money there is for the arts. But let's not kid ourselves; that's not being an artist. The challenges facing professional artists take every fiber of our being to overcome. The truth is there is no such thing as a starving artist. Professional artists don't starve or have "day jobs" -- plain and simple. The world is brimming with unlimited abundance if we are willing to figure out and DO what it takes to connect with it. We must adjust our expectations to fit our vision of what the world has to offer. If we believe in a world where art isn't important then we have no right to expect anything from it. Being a professional artist is a lifetime adventure of commitment that takes talent, drive, vision -- and plenty of food!

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