The Guardian has a special report this week about how art schools in Britain are being accused by some contemporary artists of not properly preparing their students for the harsh economic reality that awaits them after graduation. The accompanying online gallery starts out with artist Gavin Turk (pictured right) who says things have changed since he became a successful artist bang right out of school, that the boom is over and that professors need to prepare their young charges for hard work instead of filling their heads with false hopes of super-stardom. As Jessica Shepherd reports, however, some artists like Fiona MacDonald see a problem in the culture at large besides:
"It's our reality TV society that makes us think we can go from pauper
to princess," she says. "There's more chatter about who sold what to
whom than there used to be. That atmosphere has pervaded the art world
in general."
Personally I highly doubt there are many art schools out there promising their students they can count on being the next Damien Hirst, especially in this recession, and the story smacks of invented controversy to me. Which is not to say it isn't terrifying to graduate with a degree in anything art-related these days. I remember years ago already talking to someone at CCA just as the college had inaugurated their Curatorial Studies program who was bemoaning the fact they were preparing students for a particular kind of job in the art world that realistically is scarce at best. And my artist friends do not expect to ever make a killing, nor are they trying to. They just want to make their art and, if possible, a living.
