Arts workforce

The National Endowment for the Arts today released its new report Artists In The Workforce. The report looks at a wide range of occupations under the category of "artists" -- from actors to architects. Under this definition, the total number of artists working in the United States is almost 2 million (1,999,474 by the NEA's count). That is roughly 1.4% of the total labor force. In metropolitan areas, the percentage is much higher (almost 3.5% in Washington DC, according to the Washington Post). Interestingly, the big jump in the number of came between 1970 and 1990. Since 1990, the proportion of artist in the workforce has remained steady.

By far the largest category is designers, followed by fine arts and then architects:

Actors: 39,717
Announcers: 55,817
Architects: 198,498
Fine artists, art directors, and animators: 216,996
Dancers and choreographers: 25,651
Designers: 779,359
Entertainers and performers: 41,128
Musicians: 169,647
Photographers: 147,389
Producers and directors: 139,996
Writers and authors: 185,276

From Artists in the Workforce (Research Report #48), courtesy of the National Endowment for the Arts


Some highlights from the report:

• Artists are entrepreneurial – 3.5 times more likely to be self-employed.

• Artists are underemployed – one-third of artists work for only part of the year.

• Artists are more educated. Artists are twice as likely to have a college degree as other U.S. workers.

• But artists generally earn less than workers with similar education levels. The median income from all sources in 2005 was $34,800 for artists, higher than the $30,100 median for the total labor force, and lower than the $43,200 for all professionals.

• Women remain underrepresented in several artist occupations. Men outnumber women in architecture, announcing, music, production, and photography. Women outnumber men in the fields of dance, design, and writing.

• Opportunities for artistic employment are greater in metropolitan areas. More than one-fifth of all U.S. artists live in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Washington, and Boston. Half of all artists live in 30 metropolitan areas.

Clearly "The Arts" claims a major piece of the economy. Others have come up similar findings. For example, last year, Americans for the Arts published a report on the size of the "arts economy" (see earlier posting). According to that study, the nonprofit arts and culture industry generated $166.2 billion in total economic activity and 5.7 million full-time equivalent jobs. And then there is all of the work of Richard Florida and others on the "creative class" -- a much broader category that claims 30% of the U.S. work force.

The studies use different numbers and definitions. The conclusion is the same: this isn't your grandfather’s workforce.

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The NEA report uses the following definitions:

Actors—stage, television, radio, video, or motion picture.
Announcers—radio, television, public address systems, events.
Architects—private residences, commercial buildings, landscapes.
Fine artists, art directors, and animators—art directors; craft artists; fine artists include: painters, sculptors, and illustrators; multi-media artists; animators. This category is called “artists and related workers” in the census coding scheme. In this report, it is often abbreviated as “fine artists” or “painters”.
Dancers and choreographers—in this report, it is often abbreviated as “dancers”.
Designers—commercial and industrial designers, fashion designers, floral designers, graphic designers, interior designers, merchandise displayers and window trimmers, set and exhibit designers.
Entertainers and performers—comedians, puppeteers, rodeo riders, stunt performers, ventriloquists, jugglers, and others. The category includes all entertainers, performers, sports and related workers not specifically categorized. The many individual job titles within this category are overwhelmingly entertainers and performers rather than athletes. (The vast majority of athletes fall under a separate “athletes” category.) In the report, this artist group is often abbreviated as “entertainers”.
Musicians and singers—music directors, conductors, composers, musicians, and singers. In this report, it is often abbreviated as “musicians”.
Photographers—includes scientific photographers, aerial photographers, and photojournalists.
Producers and directors—stage, television, radio, video, or motion picture. In this report, it is often abbreviated as “producers”.
Writers and authors—scripts, stories, novels, poems, plays, biographies, advertisements, speeches, and other material. Does not include technical writers, editors, or journalists. In this report, this artist group is often abbreviated as “writers”.