Visual arts and artists in 2023 

The Culture Monitor's Annual Report 2023 was released recently. We reported on this earlier in BK information #4 of this year. 
In the current issue, we take a closer look at the Visual Arts domain page, which is part of the Annual Report. That page discusses developments around and differences in the (labor) market position of visual artists and the associated challenges. Also discussed are museums, art consumption and digitization. 
Below is a summary of the findings from the survey. For complete information and sources, please refer to the Culture Monitor available online.

Numbers and value 

In 2022, there were 16,000 visual artists working in the Netherlands. In 2021, there were approximately 19,500 people working in the visual arts domain. At 5.3 percent between 2010 and 2021, the growth in the number of people employed within the visual arts is significantly higher than that in the national economy (0.8 percent between 2010 and 2021). In 2019, visual arts had an added value of nearly 470 million euros. 

Employment and income 

Alumni of a full-time college course in autonomous visual arts earned an average of about 1,583 euros gross per month in 2021 a year and a half after graduation. For their colleagues who completed the full-time fine art and design teacher program, the average was 2,843 euros. The average of all full-time art programs at the hbo is 1,796 euros, that of all full-time hbo programs 2,999 euros. 

Of those who work as visual artists after training, almost all work as freelancers

Graduates of fine arts programs are less likely to find a job that fits the program. In the period between 2016 and 2021, an average of 43 percent of bachelor's students of autonomous visual arts have a job within their own or related field of study after a year and a half. Among bachelor students trained as teachers in this direction, the figure is 76 percent. Of all college graduates, 90 percent find a job within a year and a half that is related to their education. 

Of those who work as visual artists after training and fall within the definition of visual artist used by CBS, almost all work as self-employed. Visual artists rarely practice their profession in paid employment. For many of these self-employed artists, income did not increase much after the first year and a half. Furthermore, it appears that on average men have (slightly) more income than women and that over 50 percent of visual artists have an income of less than 2,000 euros per year. 

Presentation institutions seem to be closer to the daily practice of visual artists than museums

Some of this income comes from institutions that present visual art and pay visual artists for the work they do specifically for these presentations. Presentation institutions seem to be closer to the daily practice of visual artists than museums. A review of the artist fees guideline has revealed that in the period 2018-2020, presentation institutions are applying for the most funds for this purpose and that they also embrace the guideline more than museums in terms of feasibility. 

By 2023, the additional cost of Fair Pay in the cultural sector has been mapped out: 3.2 million euros is needed for the "Visual Arts and Creative Industries" category, of which 63 percent (2.0 million euros) is needed for the visual arts. This high percentage is caused by the fact that the visual arts includes many small and medium-sized organizations that receive only short-term or limited subsidies. Of the additional costs within the visual arts and creative sector, almost half (1.5 million euros) relate to additional costs of salaried staff and slightly more than half (1.7 million euros) to self-employed workers. 

Local context 

The visual arts domain, apart from presentation institutions and, to a lesser extent, museums, appears to be strongly linked to local policy. Visual art museums appear to depend on municipal and provincial subsidies for a larger part of their income. Displaying visual art also appears to be of growing importance among municipalities. In funding visual art, municipalities that receive money from the Decentralization Allowance for Visual Arts and Design have been spending most of this budget on museums for years. The share of presentation institutions is also increasing, but at 8 percent it does not come close to the 63 percent that museums receive for visual art. A local context and related cooperation is important for zzp'ers within the visual arts. 

Museum visit 

Museum attendance almost doubled in 2022. In that year, museums' own income was 501 million euros, an increase of 191 million euros from the previous year, but still 35 million euros lower than in 2019. Museums' own income rose from 30 percent of total revenue in 2021 to 43 percent in 2022. Visitor numbers are also on the rise: in 2022, there were 23.5 million museum visits, of which 5.6 million (24 percent) were from abroad, almost doubling compared to 2021. Visitor numbers are thus on their way back to the line before the corona crisis. Expectations for 2023 are positive, interest and support for museums are high. 

Art Market

At $67.8 billion, the value of the international art market in 2022 is higher than its pre-pandemic level in 2019 ($64.4 billion). Growth is lower than expected, in part because of political and economic instability worldwide. Online sales comprise 16 percent of total international art market sales in 2022. Hopes that the corona pandemic would level the playing field a bit prove unfounded; still a smaller and smaller portion of companies and artists account for an increasing share of sales. 

Women's position

Existing studies on the representation of women in museums make it clear that there is gender inequality and that women are severely underrepresented within various parts of the art world. While women appear to be reasonably represented on the staff of fine art institutions, in recent years they have been underrepresented in leadership positions and as artists in the collections of major institutions. In fine arts programs, the vast majority of alumni are women (71 percent), but ultimately only 54 percent of active visual artists on the job market are women. Figures on the representation of women artists in museums are still widely lacking. 

Inequality has been found to drive undesirable behavior on several levels

Not enough is yet known about the representation of female artists at fairs and in galleries in the Netherlands, although the available figures show that the proportion of female artists at international fairs has increased in recent years. Inequality appears to play into the hands of undesirable behavior in several areas, which has also been the subject of many recent reports at Dutch art academies and within visual arts organizations. 

Visitor numbers

Visitor numbers recovered in 2022 and this is expected to continue in 2023. In 2022, museums had 1.2 billion euros in revenue, most of which was own income (43 percent) and government grants (52 percent). Turnover is thus 9 percent higher than in 2019. It is difficult to give a complete picture of the public interested in visual art. For example, many smaller exhibitions - such as those in cafes, pop venues, or creative incubators - still take place under the radar. In addition, it is almost impossible to get a view of visitors to exhibitions without a box office. 

Small institutions

The divide that has emerged between institutions that claimed emergency support and those that have been repeatedly shut out is recovering, but remains visible. Small museums in particular are taking longer to recover; their own income declined by a total of 28 percent between 2019 and 2022, for large museums it was only 6 percent. Small and medium-sized museums had relatively smaller declines in visitors than large museums, but the recovery in visitor numbers is also smaller. 

Digitization

The gains that digitization can bring, for example in increasing reach and access, do not yet contribute to better economic positions for creators. For the many ways in which images can be used online, appropriate compensation is not yet always available to visual artists - although collecting society Pictoright is pushing for compensation for visual creators. 

New creators and aging 

New creators and institutions seem to face increasingly high barriers. High real estate prices in urban areas and high inequality have for years had a 

negative effect on the space available for new sounds. This threshold is still current and does not seem likely to change in the coming years. Several institutions indicate an aging population. Are there enough facilities for new Dutch 

artists, galleries and institutions?

Cultural incubators provide innovation, connection and cross-pollination

To better understand this development, it is important to take a closer look at the various organizational forms that have emerged in the visual arts in recent years. For example, makers seem to be increasingly joining forces to combine forces. Cultural incubators provide innovation, connection and cross-pollination. But they are no panacea for existing obstacles, such as housing shortages and rising prices. 

Within the current grant system, there is little room for the sustainable development of young talent

Another issue related to the aging of the visual arts concerns the stability of financial flows. Within the current subsidy system there is little room for the sustainable development of young talent. An instrument to structurally measure the influence of subsidies and other facilities on talent development in a structural, multi-year manner is still lacking.