This might come as no surprise: most artists aspire to make a living from their art alone. However, having a day job doesn’t make you less of an artist, and in fact, contrary to popular belief, it can play a liberating role in one\u2019s life as an artist. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
First, let\u2019s examine the scenario of someone who subsists entirely from their art. If this has been you, you may have noticed that something curious happens when you’re depending on your art for financial sustenance. Gradually, the sense of playfulness with which you began creating slips away. You might find yourself caring more about what others will think of your work. Will it \u201csucceed?\u201d Will it \u201cperform\u201d well? In other words, will it pay the bills? However necessary it may be for survival, defining success under these terms can become dangerous territory.<\/a> On a psychological level, it erodes at the joy of the creative process and can produce tremendous stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Artists living balanced, healthy, productive, and sustainable lives often maintain a variety of projects. Some of these are purely for art\u2019s sake, and others are for money. A day job or commercial freelance gig can provide a healthy separation between creativity and finances while restoring a playful sense of wonder to your creative process. The state of play is the state from which the best work is often made. The freedom to have no dependency on whether your work is a \u201csuccess\u201d can be the most empowering condition for a healthy creative flow. Ask yourself: \u201cAm I making my art with regard to financial outcome?\u201d If so, ask yourself how nice it might feel if money weren’t on your mind while you\u2019re in the studio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many artists and musicians enjoy the benefit of a day job that deepens their knowledge and perspective of the world from a lens beyond their creative craft. The sciences can lend themselves particularly well to this, and even feed into one\u2019s creative practice. Dan Snaith, a.k.a. Caribou, for instance, began as a professor of Mathematics before becoming known for his music. Colombian synthesist Lucrecia Dalt\u2019s background as a geologist and civil engineer laid the conceptual framework for her 2018 LP Anticlines<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe separation between creativity and finances<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
A broadened perspective<\/h2>\n\n\n\n