In the Point of View-series we ask artists and cultural professionals to respond to current events in the culture scene. First up is Katrine Bengtsson, a graduate of the Masters course Arts & Heritage: Policy, Management and Education at Universiteit Maastricht. She graduated Cum Laude in November 2012 and is currently involved in a research project and freelance activities as well as holding a position as a technical support advisor.
Money makes the world go round, isn’t that what people say? The cost of living in a society inevitably involves the green: dosh, bread, dough, cash. Whatever you call it, we all need it, and in times of an economic recession it not only lingers in the back of many minds, but often scratches or even shatters the surface. In the art world, money has always been something of a dilemma. One of the basic tenets of art marketing, for example, is that art differs from conventional products which have some clear and functional purpose. Artistic and cultural ‘products’ (such as exhibitions, festivals, institutions and so on) have long been faced with the difficult task of convincing audiences and funding agents of their value. Dutch politicians have even famously devalued culture to a “left-wing hobby” (ArtWorld Salon). As a response, the cultural world is busy justifying its very existence while at the same time, it is considered utterly vulgar to think of your work in terms of currency, which diminishes the lofty ambitions of its content.
For many young professionals today, completing an arts-related study programme and gaining practical experience through voluntary positions and internships is proving not to be enough to land a job in the industry. In the Netherlands fierce budget cuts have been leveled on the cultural sector, and the national arts budget has been reduced by more than 200 million Euros; over 20%. As reporters of ArtWorld Salon noted, “Europe’s most generous arts funding regime is about to turn into a laboratory for transitioning to, well, no one knows what exactly…” The drastic budget cuts pose new problems for the country’s cultural infrastructure, largely built up with generous governmental subsidies. The theoretical opposition between government-subsidized and market-driven arts practices is now the practical reality in the Netherlands.
Against this backdrop, perhaps it should not come as a surprise that entering the labour market in this sector is highly competitive. For recent graduates and others wishing to enter the cultural labour market, the situation is tense. I build my opinion on these matters partly from what I read in news and specialized publications, and also on experience. My personal experience and the experiences of many of my fellow graduates and professionals I have met in the region help me to build up an image of how people work here, and what challenges they face as they balance out financial necessities with their passion and time.
With few cultural jobs advertised, an obvious option for many people is to take a side job, or day job, while they continue to search for job openings. Whether it is waiting tables, working the cash register, or working in a call-centre, side jobs can keep you financially afloat. Struggling young professionals can in this context be likened to the archetypal image of the starving artist, balancing between financial necessity and a pull to fulfill some inner calling.
Through my freelance activities (revolving mostly around text creation and translation as well as research and communication activities) I have met Nicole Maurer, one of the founders of Maurer United Architects based in the Van Eyck here in Maastricht. She previously held a call center job, and yet today she is busy with the things she is passionate about: architecture, design, media and urbanism. Nicole managed to secure a ‘stipendium’ for herself through a governmental fund, Fonds voor beeldende kunsten en architectuur, which provided her with a year’s salary to fulfill a cultural plan. Even with this stipendium and several successful projects, she and her partner Marc took on side jobs, often commuting. Marc taught classes while doing his PhD, and Nicole took jobs in architectural offices and many cultural institutions. Through lots of hard work and connecting with like-minded professionals the two managed to organize exhibitions and enter architectural competitions, winning some and also earning some honorable mentions. They had the opportunity to take over assignments from an architectural office soon to close down in Maastricht, and thus managed to set up their own office. Today they are busy running several initiatives and projects parallel, and further strengthening their network in the region. The key in this situation is to work very hard, and not let the day job distract you from your actual goals – don’t wait for the opportunities to present themselves.
Another way to go is to grab the initiative and be pro-active. The Artists and The Others is an example of what can be accomplished when a few like-minded people join forces and work in a targeted fashion. Nika, Jessica and Wouter have built upon their knowledge of the local cultural infrastructure and insights gained through studies, and combined it with their personal ambitions and passions. With several projects already successfully completed and more planned for the future, there is hope and potential for growth, and indeed, they have recently brought Janna on board as project developer. What the young professional should be aware of here is that they were, in the beginning, working without guarantee of financial compensation. They have to invest the time in planning, organizing and writing proposals, and then present these proposals with the intention of getting the project funded: it is a balancing act.
I find myself in a similar situation. Although I have not started an initiative as such, I have begun working freelance. Throughout my studies I realized that I have developed a way with words, and thought this might allow me to find a niche within this sector. In the Euregion many languages are heard and used, and so my English and German skills come in handy. My ability to read Dutch proficiently also helps. An irony about this proliferation of languages is that, somehow, there don’t seem to be many jobs available in the country which do not require fluent Dutch. The language barrier is a real obstacle in the labour market. This has made it difficult for me to find even a side job – surprising in the ‘heart of Europe’. I have held a position in a call centre for about 6 months now, once again falling back on my language skills to earn some money. Only time will tell whether my situation turns out as well as Nicole’s has.
In March 2013 I accepted a one-month long voluntary position as a curatorial assistant at the Ludwig Forum in Aachen. I heard about the possibility through a fellow graduate of my master course, Josephine Mengedoht, who is currently working at the Ludwig Forum. She is employed on a project basis, and will provide curatorial assistance for a retrospective exhibition of the American artist Nancy Graves until its opening in October 2013. Although not earning an appropriate salary, she is nonetheless employed in her desired field and gaining valuable experience in a respected institution. My role at the Ludwig Forum put my research skills to use, as I assisted the curator of the exhibition ‘Die anderen Amerikaner’. It was a great experience and interesting work, but the fact remains that it was unpaid – not even a transportation allowance was granted, so I was in effect paying in order to work for free. This is a brief example of an oft-seen story; the unpaid intern, who should be happy to gain worthwhile professional experience and make connections. The hope is, of course, that good internships and references will lead to desired employment in the future, but it seems that more and more internships are being offered while paid positions are few and far between.
So for the most part, I have had to rely on the call-centre position for financial stability. 4 days a week of 8,5 hours in an office building wearing a headset – not the ideal position! I have started to grab every opportunity I have to do other things, participate in projects, or meet new people. Through various networking events I have made a few contacts, and managed to find a part-time position as a research assistant on a project investigating the city of Heerlen, its history and its prospects in terms of demographic change and identity. It is a great opportunity to research and work on a topic which I have genuine interest in, and if all goes well I will be contributing to a publication on the topic. And despite my elation at having this position which is paid, it requires only about 7 hours/week, and payment will arrive at the end of the assignment period near the end of the year, meaning that I cannot yet give up the side job. What seems clear is that one or two small projects are not enough to live on – you are required to be very active and have your fingers in many pies simultaneously, and maybe one day it will lead to the jackpot: a full-time, adequately paid job doing something you love.
So what’s going on? Qualified graduates, eager and ready to enter the industry, are finding all sorts of obstacles. One question I am forced to ask myself, no matter how painful it might be, is; are there simply too many of us? In order to gain experience and a foothold into this world, many people offer their services for free, driven by idealism and passion. Art subjects are very popular across the world and in the Netherlands alone over 4,000 people graduated with an arts degree in 2010. Perhaps especially in this climate of economic decline, the arts are simply not a wise path to take. Idealistic students will always want to follow their dreams and the logic that they would rather do something they are passionate about and get small salaries than a job they hate for more substantial pay. I admit that I am one of those people, but I cannot live on air.
I regret that I cannot offer any final conclusion, or concrete advice. All I can do is paint a picture from my point of view, and share it with others. ‘Finding a job’ is not as simple as it sounds, that is a cold fact. Taking Nicole’s advice, you have to almost become an entrepreneur and proactively market yourself and your position: let people know what you can do and what your interests are, and what makes you different. Only by making the right connections can you earn the opportunity to prove your worth and then make a living doing a job you care about. Go forth and prosper.
Katrine Bengtsson is a graduate of the Masters course Arts & Heritage: Policy, Management and Education at Universiteit Maastricht. She graduated Cum Laude in November 2012 and is currently involved in a research project and freelance activities as well as holding a position as a technical support advisor.
Money makes the world go round, isn’t that what people say? The cost of living in a society inevitably involves the green: dosh, bread, dough, cash. Whatever you call it, we all need it, and in times of an economic recession it not only lingers in the back of many minds, but often scratches or even shatters the surface. In the art world, money has always been something of a dilemma. One of the basic tenets of art marketing, for example, is that art differs from conventional products which have some clear and functional purpose. Artistic and cultural ‘products’ (such as exhibitions, festivals, institutions and so on) have long been faced with the difficult task of convincing audiences and funding agents of their value. Dutch politicians have even famously devalued culture to a “left-wing hobby” (ArtWorld Salon). As a response, the cultural world is busy justifying its very existence while at the same time, it is considered utterly vulgar to think of your work in terms of currency, which diminishes the lofty ambitions of its content.
For many young professionals today, completing an arts-related study programme and gaining practical experience through voluntary positions and internships is proving not to be enough to land a job in the industry. In the Netherlands fierce budget cuts have been leveled on the cultural sector, and the national arts budget has been reduced by more than 200 million Euros; over 20%. As reporters of ArtWorld Salon noted, “Europe’s most generous arts funding regime is about to turn into a laboratory for transitioning to, well, no one knows what exactly…” The drastic budget cuts pose new problems for the country’s cultural infrastructure, largely built up with generous governmental subsidies. The theoretical opposition between government-subsidized and market-driven arts practices is now the practical reality in the Netherlands.
Against this backdrop, perhaps it should not come as a surprise that entering the labour market in this sector is highly competitive. For recent graduates and others wishing to enter the cultural labour market, the situation is tense. I build my opinion on these matters partly from what I read in news and specialized publications, and also on experience. My personal experience and the experiences of many of my fellow graduates and professionals I have met in the region help me to build up an image of how people work here, and what challenges they face as they balance out financial necessities with their passion and time.
With few cultural jobs advertised, an obvious option for many people is to take a side job, or day job, while they continue to search for job openings. Whether it is waiting tables, working the cash register, or working in a call-centre, side jobs can keep you financially afloat. Struggling young professionals can in this context be likened to the archetypal image of the starving artist, balancing between financial necessity and a pull to fulfill some inner calling.
Through my freelance activities (revolving mostly around text creation and translation as well as research and communication activities) I have met Nicole Maurer, one of the founders of Maurer United Architects based in the Van Eyck here in Maastricht. She previously held a call center job, and yet today she is busy with the things she is passionate about: architecture, design, media and urbanism. Nicole managed to secure a ‘stipendium’ for herself through a governmental fund, Fonds voor beeldende kunsten en architectuur, which provided her with a year’s salary to fulfill a cultural plan. Even with this stipendium and several successful projects, she and her partner Marc took on side jobs, often commuting. Marc taught classes while doing his PhD, and Nicole took jobs in architectural offices and many cultural institutions. Through lots of hard work and connecting with like-minded professionals the two managed to organize exhibitions and enter architectural competitions, winning some and also earning some honorable mentions. They had the opportunity to take over assignments from an architectural office soon to close down in Maastricht, and thus managed to set up their own office. Today they are busy running several initiatives and projects parallel, and further strengthening their network in the region. The key in this situation is to work very hard, and not let the day job distract you from your actual goals – don’t wait for the opportunities to present themselves.
Another way to go is to grab the initiative and be pro-active. The Artists and The Others is an example of what can be accomplished when a few like-minded people join forces and work in a targeted fashion. Nika, Jessica and Wouter have built upon their knowledge of the local cultural infrastructure and insights gained through studies, and combined it with their personal ambitions and passions. With several projects already successfully completed and more planned for the future, there is hope and potential for growth, and indeed, they have recently brought Janna on board as project developer. What the young professional should be aware of here is that they were, in the beginning, working without guarantee of financial compensation. They have to invest the time in planning, organizing and writing proposals, and then present these proposals with the intention of getting the project funded: it is a balancing act.
I find myself in a similar situation. Although I have not started an initiative as such, I have begun working freelance. Throughout my studies I realized that I have developed a way with words, and thought this might allow me to find a niche within this sector. In the Euregion many languages are heard and used, and so my English and German skills come in handy. My ability to read Dutch proficiently also helps. An irony about this proliferation of languages is that, somehow, there don’t seem to be many jobs available in the country which do not require fluent Dutch. The language barrier is a real obstacle in the labour market. This has made it difficult for me to find even a side job – surprising in the ‘heart of Europe’. I have held a position in a call centre for about 6 months now, once again falling back on my language skills to earn some money. Only time will tell whether my situation turns out as well as Nicole’s has.
In March 2013 I accepted a one-month long voluntary position as a curatorial assistant at the Ludwig Forum in Aachen. I heard about the possibility through a fellow graduate of my master course, Josephine Mengedoht, who is currently working at the Ludwig Forum. She is employed on a project basis, and will provide curatorial assistance for a retrospective exhibition of the American artist Nancy Graves until its opening in October 2013. Although not earning an appropriate salary, she is nonetheless employed in her desired field and gaining valuable experience in a respected institution. My role at the Ludwig Forum put my research skills to use, as I assisted the curator of the exhibition ‘Die anderen Amerikaner’. It was a great experience and interesting work, but the fact remains that it was unpaid – not even a transportation allowance was granted, so I was in effect paying in order to work for free. This is a brief example of an oft-seen story; the unpaid intern, who should be happy to gain worthwhile professional experience and make connections. The hope is, of course, that good internships and references will lead to desired employment in the future, but it seems that more and more internships are being offered while paid positions are few and far between.
So for the most part, I have had to rely on the call-centre position for financial stability. 4 days a week of 8,5 hours in an office building wearing a headset – not the ideal position! I have started to grab every opportunity I have to do other things, participate in projects, or meet new people. Through various networking events I have made a few contacts, and managed to find a part-time position as a research assistant on a project investigating the city of Heerlen, its history and its prospects in terms of demographic change and identity. It is a great opportunity to research and work on a topic which I have genuine interest in, and if all goes well I will be contributing to a publication on the topic. And despite my elation at having this position which is paid, it requires only about 7 hours/week, and payment will arrive at the end of the assignment period near the end of the year, meaning that I cannot yet give up the side job. What seems clear is that one or two small projects are not enough to live on – you are required to be very active and have your fingers in many pies simultaneously, and maybe one day it will lead to the jackpot: a full-time, adequately paid job doing something you love.
So what’s going on? Qualified graduates, eager and ready to enter the industry, are finding all sorts of obstacles. One question I am forced to ask myself, no matter how painful it might be, is; are there simply too many of us? In order to gain experience and a foothold into this world, many people offer their services for free, driven by idealism and passion. Art subjects are very popular across the world and in the Netherlands alone over 4,000 people graduated with an arts degree in 2010. Perhaps especially in this climate of economic decline, the arts are simply not a wise path to take. Idealistic students will always want to follow their dreams and the logic that they would rather do something they are passionate about and get small salaries than a job they hate for more substantial pay. I admit that I am one of those people, but I cannot live on air.
I regret that I cannot offer any final conclusion, or concrete advice. All I can do is paint a picture from my point of view, and share it with others. ‘Finding a job’ is not as simple as it sounds, that is a cold fact. Taking Nicole’s advice, you have to almost become an entrepreneur and proactively market yourself and your position: let people know what you can do and what your interests are, and what makes you different. Only by making the right connections can you earn the opportunity to prove your worth and then make a living doing a job you care about. Go forth and prosper.
