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There’s a lot of hand-wringing in these comments about “But how will artists get paid? Who will bother to make art if they can’t make a living by their art?” S

There’s a lot of hand-wringing in these comments about “But how will artists get paid? Who will bother to make art if they can’t make a living by their art?” Spoilers: Most artists don’t get paid. Most artists can’t make a living by their art. If you go around announcing your intentions to become a professional artist, in any medium, nobody will assure you that you’ll make good money for it. Thousands of people write novels for fun or their own satisfaction, and then post them online for free, because that’s the only way they can be read.

BerislavLopac 8y ago
And for those that get paid, in most cases that is not due to copyright. They get paid by selling, directly or through middlemen, hard or digital copies of their work, or simply get paid to create in the first place, via services like Patreon or by commission.
- edanm 8y ago
  > They get paid by selling, directly or through middlemen, hard or digital copies of their work Yes, but if other copies of this were essentially free, they wouldn't be able to sell these copies! (Or at least, probably only a small fraction). > or simply get paid to create in the first place, via services like Patreon or by commission. I'm a big Patreon fan and the rise of Patreon makes me very happy. However, it's worth noting that there are some problems with this model - for example, only art that pleases wealthy people will tend to get made under this model - it's better economics to target people living in rich Western countries over people living anywhere else. Also, only art that is kind of "acceptable" will tend to get made. Art that is more experimental, less likely to be immediately popular, less likely to immediately catch the eyes of the rich audience - that kind of art will become less prevalent.
flycaliguy 8y ago
Really? What about commercial art? As an animator, I'm surrounded by artists who are all making a great living. We create huge teams of artists and we create magnificent, profitable art. You can't just drop a bomb on creative professionals.

BerislavLopac 8y ago

And for those that get paid, in most cases that is not due to copyright. They get paid by selling, directly or through middlemen, hard or digital copies of their work, or simply get paid to create in the first place, via services like Patreon or by commission.

edanm 8y ago
> They get paid by selling, directly or through middlemen, hard or digital copies of their work Yes, but if other copies of this were essentially free, they wouldn't be able to sell these copies! (Or at least, probably only a small fraction). > or simply get paid to create in the first place, via services like Patreon or by commission. I'm a big Patreon fan and the rise of Patreon makes me very happy. However, it's worth noting that there are some problems with this model - for example, only art that pleases wealthy people will tend to get made under this model - it's better economics to target people living in rich Western countries over people living anywhere else. Also, only art that is kind of "acceptable" will tend to get made. Art that is more experimental, less likely to be immediately popular, less likely to immediately catch the eyes of the rich audience - that kind of art will become less prevalent.

flycaliguy 8y ago

Really? What about commercial art? As an animator, I'm surrounded by artists who are all making a great living. We create huge teams of artists and we create magnificent, profitable art. You can't just drop a bomb on creative professionals.