Do artists hate capitalism?

How should those in the arts respond to criticism that the 'arts' hates capitalism?
[This is archived content and may not display in the originally intended format.]

You don’t have to scratch too hard, as tabloid commentators well know, to get accusations flying and blog comments trolling, that the ‘Arts’ are politically biased, to the ‘left’ obviously. Artists, so the clichés go, are anti-capitalist and think anyone who disagrees with them is a red-neck. The ‘arts’ are full of ‘parasitic’ publicly subsidised elites dictating ‘politically correct’ agendas on the rest of the community. It’s a perennial favourite, right up there with: ‘what a waste of money‘ and ‘you call that art?’ Of course, it’s all a bit silly. But you can’t just write such things off and ignore them either.

Unlock Padlock Icon

Unlock this content?

Access this content and more

Fiona Mackrell
About the Author
Fiona Mackrell is a Melbourne based freelancer. You can follow her at @McFifi or check out www.fionamackrell.com