About Artists and Money.

So just how does money affect the artist and the creative process....and the final result of his or her artwork or art career? This is not a new question or line of thought. Rather it is a longstanding question that has been debated for decades or perhaps for centuries. I am not always so good at short stories, articles so now I will tell you this is a two part article that will be continued in a second posting soon. For now please enjoy the first part and please return later for the soon completion.

As an artist who has been around for some decades, I won't tell you how many, I have been aware of this subject and it's influences on the artist since my school years. It wasn't until my college years, upon entering a liberal arts college in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that I started to give some serious thought to receiving money for my art, forming an art career, developing, fulfilling my art desires, talents and actually getting paid for it. The first two years of my college education consisted mostly of academics and then gradually some courses in art history, anatomy drawing, scupture and so on. In the back of my mind during this time there was this nagging question and concern that begin to haunt me, begging for an answer and a solution. I continued to ask myself, how can these courses help me to earn a living ...and what kind of a living would it bring me. Where would I work after graduation, who would hire me, what kind of position or work would I be doing?

These concerns of mine didn't seem to be a concern or much of an issue for the art professors and teachers at the liberal arts college. The concern, if any, of the faculty, was to give me and other art students, the best foundation and instruction to progress and hone my artistic abilities for the maximum result. That was fine and good but where will this art education take me? What will I do with it?

At the 2 year point in college I started to research another educational outlet. I needed to see how and where I could receive an education that would have a special focus on studies and training that would lead to employment. As well how this education could prepare me as a suitable prospect for hire in a field of art. My research lead me to a technical college in Milwaukee that had a program of study for Commericial Art, which was a multi-year study in graphic design. At last I could see how my study could position me in an occupation that could use my art abilities to earn a living....guided by teachers who were working in a particular field of art and design at the same time as they were teaching at the technical college. They knew exactly what was going on in the real working world and how to find work in various design areas.

After graduation from the technical college I did find work quickly, as a layout artist at a chain of weekly newspapers. Not so glamorous but it was work and I was using my design skills...and getting paid for it. Felt good, for a while, to see such results of my art education. But around the second or third year of working at the newspaper there was a different struggle forming within, that I had to suppress and ignore...for some years beyond that point. I began to realize that my artistic abilities were not being used in my job as layout artist in a manner and way that was creatively satisfying and nourishing. My soul felt limited, controlled and my creative spirit was slowly dying. This sad feeling I was dealing with was this.... I felt I had sold my artistic soul in exchange for money. Reasonable money yes, to live on, but was it worth such creative loss, emptyness, unfulfillment? At the newspaper, after a couple of years, I was appointed as a manager of the layout and design department. More money but the creative emptyness only got worse. This management position was the start of other management positions, with job changes, at other companies later in my working life. I was getting farther and farther away from my creative joy and exploration of my art talent. I felt very artistically stagnant and empty in these positions. However, this situation and progression would not continue forever.

Next, in a continuation posting, I will explain how I learned to satisfy both the money needs issue and the creative fulfillment needs as well. Will also discuss how the creative process and finished product, painting etc. can be affected positively or negatively by the payment, commission aspect, in certain situations. (Part 2 to follow soon, later this month).