Something that happened at my work yesterday:
Art Teacher: Can you explain some of the reasons why my students would need to refine their writing skills?
My Boss: [Long and slightly pretentious explanation about how artists need to explain and unpack the meaning of their art and their motivations and write museum blurbs]
Me [a writing tutor, watching a group of 30 students shut down]: …may I say something?
Art Teacher: …yes?
Me: I’m friends with professional illustrators, folks who work in the comics industries, people who do 3D printing for a living, and people who do commissioned art. And the best reason to refine your writing is to be able to explain to people why it’s worth something, and be able to get other people excited about what you’re doing so that you don’t “die from exposure”. Portfolio summaries are important. So is social media. Everything from instagram captions to Patreon posts-
Students: [instantly perk up and pay attention]
Art Teacher: [interrupting me with a nervous laugh] Yes well we all need to make a living, but REAL artists-
Students: [all tune out again]STOP!!! FUCKING!!! DOING THIS!!! Art students deserve to know how the skills they’re learning will help them professionally, regardless of how they choose to use their art degree. Teaching that there’s only one way to “make it” as an artist is what literally STOPPED ME FROM DOING ART because I knew I was never going to be a museum artist. (All I wanted to do was doodle fairies.)
Anyway I’m gonna die mad about this.
Fuck art elitists who act like the only “real” art is museum/gallery art. Just because the person who paid for your art is a millionaire in a dick measuring contest with other millionaires doesn’t make your art inherently superior to another artist whose art was paid for by someone who wanted their D&D character illustrated and will love that art every time they get their character sheet out.