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When I pay for one artist’s output, there likely were nine others who tried and failed in a similar style. It’s like how drug companies have to try nine differ
by orzig 4y ago
When I pay for one artist’s output, there likely were nine others who tried and failed in a similar style.
It’s like how drug companies have to try nine different drugs (actually many more) before the stars align around one which is safe and effective. For the business model to work, someone has to pay for those other nine.
In pharma, it is the patients (through high prices on successful drugs). In creative industries, it is the failed artists who put in a huge amount of work with essentially no compensation. It was totally their choice, but I can understand the frustration.
I do wonder about the moral culpability of art schools, though…
- vakadrayio 4y agoYou bring up art schools, and you’re right. The influence economy is the same way. You don’t win by trying to become elite. The actual winning strat is to sell other people a fantasy of becoming elite. Hence overproduction of markers that were once elite but have been debased and diluted to oblivion.
- ghaff 4y agoProbably a variation on selling shovels and pick axes to miners rather than going to prospect for gold yourself. And there's probably actually a variant of that with the influencer economy. The ad-supported sites, microphone and camera manufacturers, etc. have almost certainly made more money than the "influencers" themselves.
- derbOac 4y agoPart of what complicates all of this is rent seeking problems, excessive licensing, monopoly abuses, protectionist overregulation, and so forth. I think There's slightly different issues going on in different areas.