Why Artists Shouldn’t Be Paid
Save money by enlisting an unpaid artist
By Holly Miles
1. Artists don’t even work right? “It’s easy for someone to just bang out a piece of art and call it the next “Sunflowers”. If Van Gogh didn’t make money then why should they? They’re definitely not better than Van Gogh. Hopefully they’ll get a real job. I could probably do it better anyway. How is anyone going to take a career as an artist seriously when it comes to future job applications?” Are some of the many lies that you may hear the anti-creatives touting. In actual fact creatives are some of the most hard-working people I know. Many are freelancers and work day and night to achieve their deadlines and build up a steady stream of clientele.
2. If they like doing it why would I pay them? “It’s not like creatives have anything better to do. They spend all their time boxed up in little rooms hunched over their work, but it’s just a hobby, right? Why should I be complicit in paying for their leisure time activities when they should be working. That’s the same as my boss paying me to go to my Judo classes on a Friday night.” If you share any of the above opinions. Please for everyone’s sake… NEVER work with creatives. It’s a waste of your time and theirs when someone who is actually appreciative and sets aside a budget to financially support their art could be involved instead.
3. If it’s digital art it doesn’t exist anyway. “Why would you pay for something that doesn’t exist? You didn’t see Dali whipping out his MacBook Pro to create “Melting Watch”. It’s easier and doesn’t cost them anything to make. Why would I pay them for something that costs them nothing? Copy paste and paint shouldn’t replace the geniuses of yesteryear. That was real art.” Get off your high horse. Everything’s digitalized nowadays and if you’re not moving with the times then you’re the one that will be missing out eventually. Support the growth of new art forms however they may arise. Digital art takes just as much time and effort as traditional forms.
4. It’s a fantastic opportunity for exposure. “Promoting my business will do wonders for them. Surely an artist can survive on exposure alone. Why would they need to purchase food or pay their rent? Don’t even get me started on needing toilet paper. What a stink they kick up.” Of course, we know that none of this is true and since artists are qualified professionals just as a teacher or doctor they should be paid accordingly. No one person is able to live on only the promise of social media exposure.
5. I can’t afford to pay everyone — “It’s not like there’s an infinite pot of money at disposal to pay all these underachievers. Why would artists need money to buy materials especially when so many of them work on their computers nowadays? Tut tut. It’s just another excuse to be on their phones. If there are so many of these artists out there how can I be responsible for them all?” In reality every client or workplace that chooses to employ an artist has an obligation to all their employees regardless of discipline.
Hopefully by now I’ve managed to convince you that any and all creative professionals should be paid. It’s not a question of ifs or buts but a necessity to support the growth of the arts and culture sectors within our society and treat others with the compassion and respect that you would want to receive. If we continue to leave artists unpaid and working on minimum hour contracts taking several jobs on the side to support their income, then this sends a strong message to future generations that this is the way they ought to expect to be treated. If you’re still unsure of the value of paying for an artist’s work or time then I think it’s probably best that you never interact with any more creatives since you’ve probably already caused them enough mental distress. As a society we ought to be pushing the boundaries of creativity just as we are supporting those within STEM careers, as it is the multi-disciplinary ideals that will inevitably help the future to be a better place to all.
