So what does it take to be a full time artist? I’ll skip past the obvious obstacles (money, talent, work) and the not so obvious (my fear of becoming so famous I can’t shave my head, attack a car with an umbrella and go drinking with Paris every night of the week, while my wife stays home with Karim Jr. and Rusty). The hurdle I’ll focus on here is becoming part of a “scene”.
Although it might be different where you are, here in Toronto the art scene is pretty diverse but split upon a couple lines. There is the more bohemian type scene which is/was focused around Queen West and then the rich peoples scene which is focused around Yorkville. There are other scenes in the middle, but again, they aren’t nearly as fun to focus on.
The bohemian “artsy” kids are really annoying to me. See how crazy I’ve dressed? See how weird my hair is and how everything I do is “artsy” and cooler than you? See how great I am and nonconformist? No, you don’t? Well, screw you. Who needs you. Not me, I’m down with this alternative scene which isn’t so alternative anymore.
On the other end of the spectrum are the rich folks. To get in with this crowd you’ve gotta roll heavy… and by roll I mean have and by heavy I mean a lot of money. These people love to be friends with the gallery owners and love to be told what is “hot” and worth buying. If they are told it’s worth buying, then it’s also worth talking to the artist. Once that happens, the artist can a) start cashing cheques and b) stop advancing their artistic style.
I was once at a gallery on a lazy Saturday afternoon. The artist happened to drop by, I had met him before and was hoping to talk to him about his new work, which was quite nice. There were around six other people in the gallery not including the artist and the gallery owner. The gallery owner started to go around to the people and ask what kind of wine they would like. “Hmm” I thought, “A nice red would be perfect while I talk to [ARTIST].” But I was not offered anything. I guess my look wasn’t that of a buyer. To add insult to soberness, the artist was completely occupied with the other five people. The circle around him was complete and I wasn’t part of it.
It’s tough to face a night of fighting through a stuffy gallery packed full of rich folks or OCAD kids just to see some art. I’d rather go on a quiet day to take my time and enjoy myself. This, however, doesn’t help further my career. Granted I can usually talk to the gallery director, but of course they fall into the above categories and can be as infuriating as the rest.
These are pretty much the rantings of a non-uber-hip poor artist, but c’mon there are a lot of us in the middle. We moderates need to rise up, band together and embrace our art and our status. I enjoy being alternative as much as the next person and I enjoy a fancy dinner as well, but I find it very difficult to deal with those crowds.
Or maybe I wish I had bought those super skinny jeans and really expensive ugly pointy loafers. Nope. No I don’t.
