The Myth of the Greedy Artist

Posted on 09 November 2014

Our society only exists because we have pro-social emotions that bring us together. The arts help us to exercise those emotions, so that we become better members of our families and societies.

The arts help to give us resilience and stimulate our thinking. The arts can be a form of play that help us to build skills useful in other areas, such as peacefully arguing a case. The arts develop our ability to think creatively, innovate, and build a better future. I have a PhD. You get PhDs from doing original research. I know plenty of people who couldn’t manage that degree, because they were incable of imagining beyond the known.

The arts are not an optional extra nor are they a poor cousin to science. We would have no civilisation capable of supporting scientifc research if it weren’t for the arts. The arts need to be freely supported without always the requirement for commercialisation.

The below is an excellent article about Taylor Swift’s decision not to make her music available via Spotify.

“The bottom line is that artists’ rights are workers’ rights. You are not being progressive or radical by denying artists the right to control their own work. You are not helping the underprivileged by making it impossible for anyone who isn’t already rich and privileged to take up artistic careers.”

—Lincoln Michel, Taylor Swift and the Myth of the Mean Greedy Artist

Peace and kindness,

Katherine


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