How Are Artists Getting Paid?

Art and labor is a big topic today, at least among artists. Specifically, it has become ever more obvious that virtually none of the money that flows into major arts institutions, companies that distribute creative content, and art markets actually reaches the artists who generate the work. And people are getting vocal about it.

Just in the past couple weeks we learned about the millions that arts executives are pulling in and contract workers at the Smithsonian Institution went on strike. Before that we saw striking workers at the Frieze Art Fair, students fighting one of the country’s oldest art and design schools over tuition, and the Fine Art Museums of San Francisco grappling with labor disputes, lawsuits, and donor hijinx. And these are just the tip of a much larger iceberg.

So, how do artists go about changing things? The models for change fall roughly into five overlapping and intersecting categories.