The Math

At some point, running an arts organization comes down to a bit of math.

Got five members of your team?

Each one wants to make a living through the organization?

Ok.

So how much money does that mean?

Let's throw out a number.  $40,000 a year per person.  Five people, that's $200,000.

Before you do a single performance, you start off needing 200,000.

Alright, now focus on that 200K for a second.  Where do you want it to come from?

30% of it from ticket sales?  That creates one type of organization.

65% from ticket sales?  That creates another.

Is one choice better then another?  Nope.  Just different. 

My point is that your artistic ambitions have numbers attached to them.

To embrace one without considering the other is dangerous.

So don't be afraid of a little math.

 

 

Comments

[Don Hall]

Making a living is not an artistic ambition.

[Adam]

Fair enough. But trying to making a living through your art is a valid ambition.

[Don Hall]

I completely agree. It's just not the same as an artistic goal.

I get twitchy when we confuse the two.

Making a living, whether through your art or your hobby or your great passion, is a financial ambition. Nothing wrong with having financial ambitions - gotta make a buck to eat - but they are different creatures from artistic ambitions.

As you write, "Is one choice better then another? Nope. Just different."

But let's not cloak the common financial ambition in the cloth of the artist.