20% of the country's artists can survive solely from artistic activities , which was revealed by the wide-ranging "Assessment of the Social and Creative Status of Artists" presented three years ago. After analyzing the research data, the Lithuanian Council for Culture initiated changes in funding and is now seeking to reassess the socio-economic situation of artists in the country. We invite artists to participate in the new "Assessment of the Social and Creative Status of Artists" and fill out a questionnaire, which can be found here: https://forms.office.com/e/G9kQwcVybF.
"The research initiated by the Lithuanian Council for Culture and conducted for the first time sought to reveal the creative and economic situation of artists so that cultural policymakers could clearly see the problems of the country's creators and make informed decisions. It is to be welcomed that the study contributed to a change in attitudes and inspired concrete resolutions – increased and more diversified scholarships for artists from state institutions. The individual scholarship of the Lithuanian Council for Culture increased by a third – to 800 euros," says Asta Pakarklytė, Chairwoman of the Lithuanian Council for Culture.
Dr. Rusnė Kregždaitė, the author of the previous study, which is repeated again this year, singles out as a positive aspect of the study the intensified discussions about the situation of artists in Lithuania, low remuneration for creativity, volatile employment, and the need to work in several jobs. It became a stimulus for the development of the topic in other studies, stimulated discussions between artists' unions on remuneration, the trade union of art workers was established, and finally, and in the programs of politicians the term "fair remuneration for the creator" appeared.
Highlighted the most pressing problems
Data collected back in 2019 and in 2020. A study conducted by the National Association of Creative and Cultural Industries and the Institute of Future Society opened up sensitive questions about the everyday life of artists.
After evaluating the structure of state and municipal budgets, it turned out that their direct investment in individual developers is very small, and the average income of the country's creators amounted to 772 euros. At that time, the study showed that one in five artists can make a living from creative activity, and almost 96 percent of creators devote at least part of their time to work without remuneration. Nevertheless, as the study revealed, for developers, their profession brings great satisfaction: 76 percent. Lithuanian artists would choose it again.
For her part, the initiator of this study, Dr. Kristina Mažeikaitė, noted that there are also significant differences between the sexes: "On average, male artists earn at least a few hundred euros more. The differences also become apparent when looking at the fields of art – it is customary to pay performing arts creators for the presentation of their work, and here representatives of the visual arts rarely receive remuneration for their work. “
Seeks a new impetus to change
According to the initiators and authors of the study, the debate about the socio-economic situation of artists has indeed increased, and how these changes transform the everyday life of artists will be sought to be clarified by a new study.
"Artists are well aware of the problems they face themselves, and often they also have a sense of what the creators of their environment are living with. However, in order to see the general situation of the field and highlight its problematics, it is necessary to have reasonable data. The research will allow to summarize the economic and creative situation of Lithuanian artists, the collected data will be able to become reasonable arguments for improving the situation of creators," says Karolina Šulskutė.
Artists can contribute to the new research (researchers Rusnė Kregždaitė, Kristina Mažeikaitė, Karolina Šulskutė) and fill out its questionnaire here: https://forms.office.com/e/G9kQwcVybF.