Calls for overhaul of NZ's arts policies after 'grim' data on artists' pay

Wednesday, 24 May 2023

Artist Judy Darragh says the new data is tragic and grim.

New research which reveals many creatives live well below the breadline is a grim indictment on the value placed on art and should galvanise officials to overhaul the country’s arts policies, artists say.

The median income for creatives in Aotearoa is $37,000 per year, according to a report released on Tuesday, compared to $61,800 for other salary and wage earners. And 44% of creatives supplement their creative income with other jobs – the median income from artists’ creative pursuits alone is just $19,500 a year.

The minimum wage for an adult earner is currently $47,216 per year.

“How tragic that it’s not getting any better,” said artist Judy Darragh, adding the “grim” report was evidence that art was being undermined in New Zealand. Quoting the late artist Billy Apple, Darragh said artists took all the risk, produced the work, but did not get compensated. “There is something quite flawed [with the system],” she said.

The research, by Kantar Public for Creative NZ and NZ On Air, was released just one week after the Government’s Budget left much to be desired for creatives.

Auckland mayor Wayne Brown proposed major budget cuts to arts funding but received major blowback for it.

As had been shown with proposed cuts to Auckland Council’s arts funding, artists were “seen as low-hanging fruit” and “always really vulnerable”, Darragh said – something that had been exacerbated as a cost of living crisis crippled people’s ability to buy food and pay rent.

Darragh said artists could be awarded a stipend to ensure they could pay bills while creating, as Norway offered. In Germany and Spain, young people were given vouchers on their 18 birthday to spend on cultural pursuits. And in Ireland, artists were paid a basic universal income. “How validating is that?” said Darragh.

Officials needed to comprehensively revise the country’s arts policies, as Australia had done with its national cultural strategy released earlier this year, Darragh said.

A bill which would see artists get paid a royalty when their work is resold is currently making its way through select committee, but the Government previously ruled out introducing a national strategy this political term, despite Arts Minister Carmel Sepuloni saying she would prioritise improving the poor pay rates.

Taupuru (Ariki) Brightwell, an artist based in Wellington, says creatives are being priced out of affordable space.

Taupuru Ariki Whakataka Brightwell, a Wellington-based artist, said it was a reality for artists to have an unstable income that fluctuated well below the $30,000 mark. Artists were being priced out of affordable studios, and were moving to survive.

Peter O’Connor, an arts expert from the University of Auckland, said the figures revealed the level of exploitation artists’ experience working in the gig economy. “Artists are part of a class of workers that can be thought of as the precariat. Everything in their lives is precarious.”

Their ability to budget, save, and plan for the future was dependent on the vagaries of grants and support in a country where the arts were seen as “peripheral”, “a frill”, or “an indulgent luxury”, O’Connor said.

“The report shows you can earn more money selling houses and used cars then you can by making a contribution to the intellectual and creative life of the country. The report is a sad indictment on what we as a nation value,” he said.

Victoria University of Wellington arts expert James Wenley said it was alarming that creatives’ income was not growing. In 2019, a similar report revealed creatives were paid about $35,800 a year – meaning there had been a rise of only $1200, a figure that would have been undercut by skyrocketing inflation.

“We can't wait another four years only to find ourselves in the same situation,” Wenley said, adding New Zealand needed to introduce a national cultural strategy urgently. “It is critical our politicians work with the sector to get policies in place to make this a reality.”

The research also found that over half of creatives reported experiencing burnout in the last year. There was even greater financial disparity for women, and Deaf and disabled artists.

Sepuloni said the Government’s investment in the arts had been significant and historic. It was committed to improving artists’ lot through the royalty scheme, $2 million for another year of its Creative Careers pilot announced in last week’s Budget, and its Cultural Sector Regeneration Programme.