Self-taught vs. College Education in art. How much does it matter?
A common question for many young (and not-so-young) artists is, “Should I go to art school? What art school should I go to? How important is art school? Will I be able to make any money from my art if I don’t have a degree?”
Nobody will be able to answer all these questions for you because your own needs are unique. However, I can give you some of my opinions and share a few things that I’ve learned over the years.
The importance of an art degree
If you are really serious about a future in art, then yes, you should definitely consider getting a formal art education. (You may not decide to go ahead with it, but consider it? Yes.) Look it it this way: if you’ve got the funding (meaning you won’t have a crippling debt) and you’ve got a good shot at getting accepted into an art program that is a good fit for you, then go for it! Why would you not? All other things being equal, some sort of formal education is almost always better than no formal education. At worst, you’ll realize that it was a waste of money (this isn’t terribly uncommon with art degrees, alas) but at best, it will be the one of the best things you did in your life. So, if you have the opportunity, you should definitely go for it.
