| New study shows how artists build careers in the creative economy
Artists move fluidly among commercial, nonprofit, and community sectors despite
formidable barriers, finds a new study from the University of Minnesota's Humphrey School of Public Affairs. The artists' ability to “cross over”
is a major stimulant to economic activity and the quality of life.
The study, “Crossover:
How Artists Build Careers across Commercial, Nonprofit, and Community Work,”
reports how artists develop successful cross-sectoral careers in ways little
understood by employers, funders, and policymakers. “Crossover” includes
in-depth interviews and data from a web-based survey of Los Angeles- and San
Francisco Bay-area musicians, writers, performing, and visual artists. Although
the report focuses on artists from two of the nations' largest creative economies,
the authors believe the results are applicable to cities across the country.
Even though crossover is quite pervasive among artists, they generally earn
more arts income for commercial work than they do for nonprofit or community
work. If money were not an issue, artists would crossover even more than they
currently do, according to the report. Many full-time commercial artists would
work more hours in the nonprofit and community sectors while others would increase
their for-profit efforts. Many more would engage in community artwork.
“This demonstrates that the barriers between sectors remain high,”
said Ann Markusen,
Humphrey School professor and chief author. “Employers, arts organizations,
and artists themselves persist in prejudices and practices that hamper synergy.”
Artists credit each sector with distinctive career growth opportunities. For-profit
work raises their visibility, deepens networks and understanding of professional
conventions, and generates higher financial returns. Nonprofit work helps artists
explore new media and collaborate across disciplines, as well as offering greater
aesthetic and emotional satisfaction. Community work ranks highest for affirming
cultural identity, pursuing political and social justice goals, and enriching
community life.
“Identifying the extent of 'crossover' is key to understanding the dividends
that artists-as core cultural workers-generate for the entire economy,”
concludes Markusen. “Artists are entrepreneurs with very high rates of
self-employment and great agility in making career changes. Their activities
help explain the resiliency of an economy in the face of structural upheavals
in commercial sectors.”
The study, sponsored by The James Irvine Foundation, The William and Flora
Hewlett Foundation, and New York-based Leveraging Investments in Creativity,
addresses how employers, schools, service organizations, funders, the media,
government, arts advocacy groups, and artists can encourage crossover.
“The arts sector needs to build the kind of relationships we see in high-tech
or medicine,” said Markusen, “where industry, nonprofit research and
advocacy groups, government, and training institutions work together to enhance
societal and economic impact.”
The complete study includes profiles of several dozen artists and can be found
online. To order copies,
contact Katherine Murphy at 612-626-1074 or k-murp@umn.edu.
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