some thoughts on art making, education, etc...

Spending a few days thinking about our lively class discussion has left me with a few unresolved questions...

1) Why do we as artists think that we are owed our piece of the pie? We spend our time critiquing capitalism, but then talk about how we can "get paid" for our art. As someone who has worked in corporate America previously, I find this sense of entitlement a bit off putting and for me personally, a bit off track...which leads into my second question...

2) Why do we as artists have the belief that art making is an all or nothing endeavor? We are either making art or not. We are a practicing artist or not. This binary attitude could only lead to an abandonment of art making by those of us who hold this belief. If our goal is to support ourselves solely through our art, then undoubtedly many of us will fail. If we take the attitude that our artmaking is simply one aspect of our larger life, then success becomes much more possible. If we believe that we can make art while making a living through other means (or supplementing our art income through other means) doesn't it make the possibility of making art so much more realistic post-graduation?

3) What is the function of the art school institution? Is it to equip us with the skills we need to make work in our medium(s) of choice? Is it to provide an environment where we can have the space to form our own artistic "tastes"? Is it to immerse us in an environment where we can collaborate with like minded peers? For me its all of these things I guess and hopefully many more things too...

I'm excited about the class and working with someone who has made work "outside of the system." I've spent the last year and half trying to figure out exactly what that means and I hope that after working with the class, I'll have a clearer idea of this when I'm through.