A review by dillarhonda
The Death of the Artist: How Creators Are Struggling to Survive in the Age of Billionaires and Big Tech by William Deresiewicz

One of the worst things about being an artist, suggests William Deresiewicz, is that everyone thinks they can be one. Through The Death of the Artist, Deresiewicz drills down into the changes in the art world that have almost universally been detrimental to the making of art and of artists. From internet piracy to professionalizing masters programs, proliferation of middle men to the insidious suggestion that the internet “leveled the playing field,” each new point will cause a sharp spike of pain for anyone who currently has artistic aspirations. Artists, are now expected to come to the market pre-packaged, self-branded, and often, independently financed. The dirty secret of the industry is that it is just that, an industry – with supply and demand, producers and consumers. Through destroying the myth of the outside artist, Deresiewicz clarifies how far our modern arts market has come from the age of the Renaissance. Romanticizing art, he underlines, is a quick way to fail.