Let’s Talk—Support

Let’s Talk—Support, as in how should we support the arts? What is the difference between art fairs that require payment to participate and cooperative galleries funded by artist members? How can we ensure that the art projects we want to see in our communities survive—should we leave the decision-making to others? Is it the responsibility of only the wealthy to support the arts, or should we all get involved? Is simply creating art and socializing enough, or do we need to volunteer and become members to give back to the community?

Collectives and grassroots projects receive their funding from the general public. Unions use the dues paid by their members to fund collective bargaining capabilities. Religious organizations receive voluntary tithes to support the services of the congregation. With technology, crowdfunding has become a popular option for artists to fund their new albums before they are made independently of a traditional music label. Cooperative gallery models are not new and we know it’s common for galleries to pay enormous fees to participate in art fairs to showcase artists’ work.

As artists, we have observed many examples of collective efforts to fund important projects. This has led us to consider why we don’t create more collective organizations that are funded by all of us. Why do we tend to focus solely on ourselves while giving away much of our collective agency, and then complain about the scarcity of opportunities? We seem to constantly compete and take without giving back. Is it time for us to consider staying and building something together instead of always moving on to the next thing?