All this moaning about art and money annoys me. Why do people expect artists to not be interested in making money with their art? How come it's OK for everybody else to make money doing whatever they want to do and are good at doing but it's not OK for artists?
It's just crap to speculate that people like Luce used to seek a profit in order to produce a good magazine, as if the goals of the magazine were independent of profit. In business the goal is making a profit with the product and if the product is aimed at something that can be valued outside of money then that's the goal that can only exist if the money is there to attain it. Profit comes first. I suppose artists and pure businesspeople are supposed to do their stuff for free to avoid being sullied by money. As an artist I try to make money with my art because it's very expensive to be an artist and I need money to pay for my studio and all the supplies and other art-related costs...and it's plenty more than most people imagine. I try to make the best art I can by aiming at art issues, art history, ideas, and all the feelings I have for it. I don't think of buyers and I never aim to please them because, frankly, they are not the source of art issues and challenges. But they have the money. And I need some of it. Here's my proposition to those who think artists should not worry about selling their art. Give me an annual stipend of $200,000 and I promise not to sell any more of my art. Better yet, give me $4,000,000 and you can have all the art I make for the rest of my life with a guarantee of at least 20 pieces a year. Now that's a great deal! I will arrange a direct deposit for you. wc ________________________________ From: joseph berg <[email protected]> To: aesthetics-l <[email protected]> Sent: Sat, February 9, 2013 11:51:42 PM Subject: "...Today, the goal is to reach the profit." Isn't art becoming like TIME magazine?: - If, 70 years ago, you asked Henry Luce, What is Time magazine for? hed probably talk about setting societys agenda, capturing the attention of the educated and powerful and most of all, delivering the best weekly news package he could. Today, the answer is clear. The purpose of the magazine is to make as much money as possible. Everything else is in service of that goal. It used to be that the profit enabled the magazine to reach its goals. Today, the goal is to reach the profit. http://articles.marketwatch.com/2013-02-05/commentary/36745745_1_profits-capi talism-invisible-hand
