Working paper 1: changing income and employment circumstances of individual artists

Reports on key issues and trends for professional artists.

In November 2003, the Australia Council published Don't give up your day job: an economic study of professional artists in Australia by Professor David Throsby and Virginia Hollister, the fourth report in a series spanning 20 years. The Throsby research provides useful information on artist incomes that is not otherwise available.

The Australia Council for the Arts Research Centre prepared separate research reports by artform/arts practice area and analysed key trends.

The data in this working paper is most useful for looking at artists by artform. This creates difficulties for multi- artform areas and the research is of limited use for new media arts, community cultural development and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander arts.

Don't give up your day job and a commentary highlighting key issues for the Australia Council for the Arts are available from this website.

This paper is only available online and is for information purposes only.