Butts In the Seats: I recently came across an article the LA Review of Books on the book The Death of the Artist: How Creators Are Struggling to Survive in the Age of Billionaires and Big Tech by William Deresiewicz.
Obviously, this sounded like a book I wanted to learn more about.
4 comments:
I was recently in a roundtable with several artistic directors and one of the lines that resonate with is that "Leaders are Readers", a line said by Bryon Stripling who currently serves as the Artistic Director of the Columbus Jazz Orchestra and this line has stuck with me and probably will resonate for the rest of my life. It is so good to see a review of a book review of a book related to this industry as someone who reads a lot of management books for pleasure. It is a little sad that the blogger didn't actually read the book but there is a nice commentary. It is interesting to hear about a book that shows how this highly capitalistic society is failing artists. Just like trickle-down economics doesn't work, the supply and demand drive the competition away and this idea isn't going away anytime soon. Right now there is an antitrust court case going on against Google for causing a monopoly (grossly summarizing this) and this is a pivotal moment for non-Google search engines but also for a lot of other industries that have monopolies like Google and will frame the monopolies to come/that exist in entertainment streaming. It was also nice to hear someone talk about the failings of how history is reported.
When I read this article it sounds like there are two stories being told. There is the story that media is being consumed at a rapid pace which can favor new artists which are nimble and looking for the people who want their content. Then there are the people who are able to make money at this.
Any time there is capitalism you are going to find people who work the system the right way to be rich. Even if you are gifted or hard working, if you don't make money you won't be able to sustain yourself. No matter the medium or the ease of access money + success = more money. Without the initial money you are at an uphill struggle.
This is also why shows don't debut on Broadway. They are shopped and worked on with backers keeping an eye on them until they think they are a good investment. Until then all the costs are on the small group to eat. One failure could doom future endeavors.
I was drawn to this article because I’ve recently been learning more about the private sector. It’s definitely something every artist has to think about wether they like it or not. It makes sense how artists have less time to perfect their craft or develop themselves and their style. If artists are to make money they have to succumb to the pressure of monetizing their art in some way that jeopardizes their artistic integrity. often times their style has to be altered to the demands of the market so those young artist that can quickly adapt are most successful. I have definitely felt like I haven’t had the time to develop myself as and artist because financial and physical needs come first. I do think it’s a shame that the author never read the book and I’m surprised he wrote a reaction piece to it without first reading the book.
I think something that often gets overlooked when talking about art and artists are those who create and perform on digital platforms in a way that is still relatively new. While reading this, I kept thinking about creators on Twitch and TikTok, who are able to support themselves or get sponsored by companies. These creators are able to make tens of thousands of dollars a month by simply performing on a digital platform, which is a lot more than what might be consider todays "traditional" artists. I mean, look at the latest rise in vtubers. If you have the means to create or commission a design, anyone can get behind a screen, act a certain way to match their character, and make money. I don't think you can have a "death of the artist" because what constitutes as an "artist" changes with each passing month, depending on who you talk to. To me, any person who creates content from physical art, to theater, to livestreams are artists and trust me when I say that streamers and TikTokers are far from becoming a dying breed or struggling. I would add that there may be a "death of the [physical] artist" as these days, people are less and less interested in the traditional arts as they were decades ago. I think that today's populous would rather buy merch for their favorite streamer than paintings of landscapes, or attending traditional theater productions that are showing old pieces in an "old" way.
Post a Comment