Income from artistic work on the decline in most fields of the arts – income level of top earners has fallen since 2000

Artistic work is the most important source of income for approximately 40 percent of Finnish artists. Income from artistic work is significant especially for those active in theatre and music, as well as for architects. In these fields of the arts, income from artistic work increased faster than in other fields since 2000 and peaked in 2010. For authors and visual artists, grants are as important a source of income as artistic work. Altogether, grants were the most important source of income for almost one in ten artists in 2010. These statistics are revealed in research carried out by Kaija Rensujeff, Special Planning Officer at the Arts Promotion Centre Finland, in which she studied the status of artists in different fields of the arts in 2010. The results are compared to those compiled in the “Status of the Artist in Finland” study from 2000.

“The amount of State support has not increased in step with the growing size of the artist community. The status of free artists – especially visual artists – will not improve without increasing support for artistic work. One of the roles of civilised nations is to nurture the working conditions of artists. This responsible cannot be passed off to the private sector,” comments Minna Sirnö, Director of the Arts Promotion Centre Finland.

The number of professional artists in Finland increased by around 20 percent between 2000 and 2010 to approximately 22,000. The proportion of women in the Finnish artist community has also grown to over half of all artists in 2010. The average age of artists has increased, and their education level is higher than ever before. The proportion of artists living in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area has also continued to grow.

According to the research, the status of artists in the labour market is increasingly unstable, as the proportion of artists working with an employment contract has decreased while the proportion of free artists and entrepreneurs has increased. Almost one in five artists was unemployed at some point in 2010. While this figure has remained stable for the artist community as a whole, the employment situation for artists in the field of cinema in particular has deteriorated significantly since 2000.

The working careers of artists in Finland are also longer. Whereas around a half of all retirement-age artists continued to do artistic work in 2000, this figure had increased to 80 percent in 2010.

Income from artistic work alone decreased significantly, by 10 percent, between 2000 and 2010. On the other hand, total taxable income increased by 8 percent due mainly to external factors. In contrast to the general trend, the income level of the top earners among artists declined between 2000 and 2010.

The growing proportion of women among artists has not increased income differences between women and men. The total income of women (including total taxable income and grants) increased from 72 to 76 percent that of men. However, there were considerable differences between artforms. Especially in those fields of the art in which the income level has remained stable or declined, income differences between women and men have narrowed the most.

Rensujeff, Kaija (2013): The Status of the Artist in Finland 2010 – The Structure of the Artist Community, Work and Income Formation. Arts Promotion Centre Finland, Helsinki. The research report is in Finnish but an English summary is available.

Further information: Kaija Rensujeff, Special Planning Officer, Arts Promotion Centre Finland, t. +358 (0)295 330 721, [email protected]