What didn’t they tell you at art school?
Jamila Walker:
You’ll spend at least 70% of your time marketing,
doing admin, etc, and only 30% actually making work.
Emilia Telese:
Art is a long career with no predetermined path,
where the journey is part of the fun; it needs stamina, dedication
and a good dose of humour.
Pippa Koszerek:
I came out of art school with an idea that it was an
either/or choice between being an artist and having a career. With
hindsight, it’s clear that the capacity for greater earning power or
an interesting role in an arts organisation are both things that help
artists remain artists. After all, you can’t really survive on relatively
low-paid part-time temp work in the long-term.
Marcelle Holt:
They didn’t tell me anything about applying for
funding, or how to survive in the real world; living hand to mouth,
juggling jobs and housing and benefits. But I’m not sure how
prepared you can be.
Elaine Speight:
That you will end up doing an inordinate amount of
admin and carrying heavy things from one place to another!