Day ten: Disillusion and money.

I am trapped at a desk today. Being trapped in one place makes me feistier than usual. I had an interesting conversation with an adjunct professor yesterday, and then was asked to answer the following question today: Why is a fine art education of value?

Why indeed. In my first blog I shared a laundry list of things that I find frustrating about the world and the art world. When I look at everything all together, it becomes a problem of my being able to see both perspectives. The ability to be angry at both sides and responsible on both sides. I don’t know how to be part of the solution and part of the problem at the same time. I can’t figure out if this stance makes me balanced or wishy washy. Let me explain.

It sucks to be an adjunct art professor. I think it sucks to be an adjunct in general, but I think it especially sucks to be an adjunct art professor because artists get MFAs and MFAs often carry a heavier debt burden than other degrees. Why does it suck? Don’t most MFAs want to be teachers? Yes, that is part of why it sucks. You see, there are only so many schools, with only so many classes. There is very little money, no stability, heavy commuting, and tons of competition in being a visiting professor. I’m not saying that teaching itself isn’t rewarding, but it is also exhausting. It is ridiculous, and one more example of how people think that if you are doing something you “love” it’s ok for you to take all sorts of shit from every other direction. Fuck that.

Loving the process of making does not make it easy. Loving the process of teaching does not make it easy. Nor does it make it less valuable as work. It is not less of a sacrifice when we are in the studio instead of traveling or spending time with family or the other hundred things that people who aren’t artists do when they have free time. We don’t. Our free time does not exist because we have three careers. Yes. Any artist you know has three careers. One is something that subsidizes their living expenses. Many people I know work 2-4 jobs to cover these, and a good chunk of those teach. Two is making their art. Three is developing and implementing the business strategies necessary to get their art seen, shown and sold.

Being an adjunct is really hard. They want respect and consistency, health insurance and a living wage. They are fighting louder now, and they deserve everything they are asking for.

This begs the question, who will pay for it? And the answer becomes tricky. Art schools charge higher tuition than most. I think people see the tuition and think that in some room somewhere someone is rolling around in a big pile of money. Anyone that has that idea, I dare you to look at the annual report of any private non-profit art school. Schools are costly to run, and art schools are especially pricey. Specialized equipment is expensive to acquire and maintain, smaller class sizes mean less tuition and less income while providing a better class experience. Building maintenance, legal and safety requirements, changes in staffing. Overhead. Artists who have worked with galleries know what it feels like to be at the mercy of their gallery, and the compromises they make. Schools often have to make these same changes to satisfy the requests of those who help endow the school. Lower endowments mean less flexibility and make it harder to meet the needs of the students.

Does it sound like I know what I’m talking about? I don’t. I am making educated guesses from the information I have. I played it safe and work a full time job. I know what my paycheck is and when it’s going to come each month. I listen to my friends as they vent. I feel guilty.

The richest living artist in the world is Damien Hirst. His net worth is around $350 million as of October. The 100^th richest person in the world is Zong Qinghou. His net worth is $11.4 billion.

I think the current monetary system is unfairly skewed toward how money is spent, not what gives value to society. Beuys did a series of conversations on this at the 77 Documenta that I need to read again. I need a drink.

Note: I went and had a drink, then I came back later and posted this. Good night!

p.s. I know that a number of my entries so far have been unfinished and incomplete. I’m figuring it out. Thank you for bearing with me.

Image above by Trevor Paglen