Artists Working for Free

[some seeing eye]

One of the dimensions of decommodification is that BM artists work for free and cannot promote their work after. Some receive a partial offset grant for materials and costs, but are expected to cover labor and insurance. Net negative. Similar "work for free" for "free exposure" exploitation may be found in the entertainment and other industries going back years up to now: http://revolva.net/2014/11/13/an-open-letter-to-oprah/. Nothing new under the playa sun.

[pink]

Work for exposure is one thing, and we can debate if it's right or exploitation, but how can the BM artists even gain exposure when they can't promote their piece? There are no plaques by the art saying who did the piece, and the artists are not permitted to use a photo of it after the burn; the Borg owns all images.

Not the same thing at all.

[theCryptofishist]

Didn't Big Rig Jig get sold and put up somewhere? And there's one on the San Francisco waterfront, and another on Treasure Island.

Artists have long been expected to donate work and not get paid in various circumstances.
Doesn't make it right, but it's a result of the basic disrespect art is held in in this culture.

[Meat Hunter]

When I first began publishing, it did not take me long to figure out my immediate response when asked if I would do a demonstration/performance 'for the sake of publicity'.

My quickly learned response was, "What is your budget?"

Once I started asking that question, it is funny how quickly folks changed the subject of the conversation to the weather.

I would have taken anything that they offered, but they wanted me for free and life ain't free.

[Jovankat]

Someone just postedthis link to the site of the graphic designer/artist who makes the official Burning Man map that gets handed out at the gate.

Why is it ok for this artist to use the art they've created for Burning Man as self promotional material (or just as material full stop) on their own website but it's not ok for those that create open playa art?

[theCryptofishist]

Do we know it's okay? My first stop would be reporting it.

[some seeing eye]

I'm all for artists getting credit and getting paid for their art. But not DJ's.

I have stopped drinking the koolade and put away my pitch fork a while back.

[Jovankat]

Do we know it's okay? My first stop would be reporting it.

I'm of the opinion that artists who create for Burning Man should be able to talk about and display that work publicly in this sort of way so dobbing this woman in to see if the rule applies equally to her seems a bit counter intuitive to me.

[alt12]

I'm all for artists getting credit and getting paid for their art. But not DJ's.

I have stopped drinking the koolade and put away my pitch fork a while back.

Don't worry, nobody would ever confuse DJs for artists.

[Jovankat]

This just came across my Facebook Newsfeed.

Seems appropriate.

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