Should artists be paid a living wage?

[LanternWaste]

93. ...is answered and addressed in this context I think

"Should artists be paid a living wage...?"

...is answered and addressed to my satisfaction (in this particular context) I think, by the nineteenth century dictum, "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need" as penned by Karl Marx in 'Criticism of the Gotha Program'

In ancient Greece, poets, writers and painters were spared from all taxation and military services by Solon the Lawgiver (and through tradition, far beyond) for "their words lift up the nation beyond what gold and salt can do." Medieval bards were, as the sole (practical) mechanism for any form of news from outside the village, were given high honors in both peasant village and royal court-- their immediate needs catered to by those whom they happened upon. The renaissance saw a sea-change in this, and the practice of being patronage, thus absolving them of any artistic and financial responsibility, yet placing them in a virtual indentured servitude-- much as is done today... we merely replace family or town with free market, however the results are the same.



I think my answer would be that everyone should be paid a living wage-- including painters. However, I have no objective or set amount on what that living wage should be as regional and even sub-urban difference in wages can fluctuate to sometimes dramatic degrees.