I come from a family of five brothers, all scientists and engineers. A few years ago, I sent them the following email: "Dear brothers, I hope this message finds you well. I am emailing to let you know that I'm dropping out of my master's program in engineering to pursue a career as a full-time musician. All that I ask from you is not to worry about me."
我家共有五兄弟, 都是科學家和工程師。 幾年前,我寄了這封 電子郵件給他們: 「親愛的兄弟們,希望你們 收到這個訊息時,一切安好。 我寫這封信是要讓你們知道, 我要放棄攻讀工程碩士學位, 改當全職音樂家。 請你們不用擔心我。」
Brother number one replied. He was encouraging but a bit skeptical. He said, "I wish you the best of luck. You're going to need it."
兄弟一號回覆了。 他很鼓勵我,但有點懷疑。 他說:「祝你好運。 你會需要的。」
(Laughter)
(笑聲)
Brother number two was a little bit more skeptical. He said, "Don't do it! This will be the worst mistake of your life. Find a real career."
兄弟二號又更懷疑了些。 他說:「別這麼做! 這將會是你人生中最嚴重的錯誤。 找個真正的職業吧。」
(Laughter)
(笑聲)
Well, the rest of my brothers were so enthusiastic about my decision, they didn't even respond.
其他的兄弟對於我的決定, 感興趣到連回都不回。
(Laughter)
(笑聲)
I know that the skepticism coming from my brothers is out of care and concern for me. They were worried. They thought it would be difficult to make it as an artist, that it will be a challenge. And you know what? They were right. It is such a challenge to be a full-time artist. I have so many friends who need to have a second job as a plan B in order to pay for the bills, except that plan B sometimes becomes their plan A. And it's not just my friends and I who experience this. The US Census Bureau states that only 10 percent of art school graduates end up working as full-time artists. The other 90 percent, they change careers, they work in marketing, sales, education and other fields.
我知道我兄弟們的懷疑 是出於對我的關心和在乎。 他們會擔心。 他們認為,要當藝術家很難, 那會是個挑戰。 你們知道嗎?他們是對的。 要當全職藝術家是個很大的挑戰。 我有好多朋友都需要有第二份工作, 當作支付帳單費用的 B 計畫, 不過有時候,B 計畫 會變成他們的 A 計畫。 不只有我的朋友和我 經歷到這種狀況。 美國人口普查局指出, 藝術學校的畢業生只有一成 成為全職的藝術家。 剩下的九成都轉換了跑道, 他們改從事行銷、業務、 教育或其他領域。
But this is not news, right? We almost expect the artist to be a struggling artist. But why should we expect that?
但這並非新聞,對吧? 我們幾乎都預期藝術家 一定會過得很辛苦。 但我們為什麼會有這樣的預期?
I read an article in the "Huffington Post" saying that four years ago, the European Union began the world's largest ever arts funding initiative. Creative Europe will give 2.4 billion dollars to over 300,000 artists. In contrast, the US budget for our National Endowment for the Arts, the largest single funder for the arts across the United States, is merely 146 million dollars. To put things into perspective, the US budget for the military marching bands alone is almost twice as much as the entire NEA.
我在《哈芬登郵報》讀到一篇文章, 文章寫說,歐盟在四年前 發起了世界上最大的藝術資助計畫。 創意歐洲計畫將會提供 24 億美元 給超過 30 萬名藝術家。 相對的,美國撥給 「國家藝術贊助基金會」的預算, 這是全美藝術最大的資助來源, 只有 1 億 4600 萬美元。 全面來看, 美國光是撥給軍方軍樂隊的預算 幾乎就是撥給整個 國家藝術贊助基金會的兩倍了。
Another striking image comes from Brendan McMahon for the "Huffington Post," saying that out of the one trillion dollar budget for military and defense-related spending, if only 0.05 percent were allocated to the arts, we would be able to pay for 20 full-time symphony orchestras at 20 million dollars apiece, and give over 80,000 artists an annual salary of 50,000 dollars each. If that's only 0.05 percent, imagine what a full one percent could do.
另外還有很引人注目的一點,來自 《哈芬登郵報》的布倫丹·麥馬漢, 他說在撥給軍方以及國防相關花費的 一兆美元預算中, 只要有 0.05% 能分配給藝術, 我們就能夠支付 20 個全職的交響樂團, 每團 2,000 萬美元, 還能給超過八萬名藝術家 每人五萬美元的年薪。 如果那只是 0.05%, 想像一下整整 1% 能做多少。
Now, I know we live in a capitalist society, and profits matter a lot. So let's look at it from a financial angle, shall we? The US nonprofit arts industry generates more than 166 billion dollars in economic activity, it employs 5.7 million people and it returns 12.6 billion dollars in tax revenue.
我知道我們處在資本主義社會, 利潤是很重要的。 所以,咱們就從 財務的角度來探討吧。 美國的非營利藝術產業 產出超過 1660 億美元的經濟活動, 該產業僱用了 570 萬人, 並給國家帶來了 126 億美元的 賦稅收入。
But this is only a financial angle, right? We all know that the arts is way more than just an economic value. The arts brings meaning to life. It's the spirit of our culture. It brings people together and it supports creativity and social cohesion.
但這只是財務面,對吧? 我們都知道藝術的價值 絕對不只是經濟價值。 藝術帶給人生意義。 它是我們文化的精神。 它讓人團結在一起,它支持創意 以及社會的凝聚力。
But if the arts contributes this much to our economy, why then do we still invest so little in arts and artists? Why do more than 80 percent of our schools nationwide still experience budget cuts in arts education programs? What is it about the value of arts and artists that we still don't understand?
但如果藝術對我們的 經濟有這麼多貢獻, 為什麼我們仍然對藝術 和藝術家投資這麼少? 為什麼全國仍然有超過八成的學校 藝術教育計畫的預算會被刪減? 藝術和藝術家的價值,到底有什麼 是我們仍然不了解的?
I believe the system is flawed and far from being fair, and I want to help change that. I want to live in a society where artists are more valued and have more cultural and financial support so they can focus on creating arts instead of being forced to drive Ubers or take corporate jobs they'd rather not have. There are other sources of income for artists, however. There are private foundations, grants and patrons who give money, except a vast majority of artists don't know about these opportunities. On one side you have institutions and people with money. On the other side you have artists seeking funding, but the artists don't know about the people with the money, and the people with the money don't necessarily know about the artists out there.
我相信體制有瑕疵, 而且一點也不公平, 我想要協助改變這個狀況。 我希望我們居住的社會 能更重視藝術家, 提供更多文化和財務上的支持, 讓他們能夠專心去創作藝術, 而不是被迫要去開優步(Uber) 或在企業做他們並不想做的工作。 然而,藝術家還有其他的收入來源。 有私人的基金會、 補助金以及經費的贊助者, 不過,大部分的藝術家 並不知道有這些機會。 在一邊,是能提供資金的機構和人。 在另一邊,是在尋找資助的藝術家, 但藝術家不認識 可以提供資金的那些人, 而可提供資金的那些人不見得知道 外頭有那些藝術家。
This is why I am very excited to share "Grantpa," an online platform that uses technology to match artists with grants and funding opportunities in a way that is easy, fast and less intimidating. Grantpa is only one step towards solving an existing problem of funding inequality, but we need to work collectively on multiple fronts to reevaluate how we view the artists in our society. Do we think of arts as a luxury or a necessity? Do we understand what goes on in the day-to-day life of an artist, or do we still believe that artists, no matter how struggling they are, are happy simply because they're following their passion?
這就是為什麼我很高興 能來分享「Grantpa」, 這是個線上平台, 使用科技來將藝術家和補助金 及資助機會做配對, 做法很簡單快速,不會讓人怯步。 Grantpa 只是朝向解決既有的 資金不平等問題邁進一步, 但我們需要在各戰線一起努力, 來重新評估我們如何看待 社會中的藝術家。 我們把藝術當作是奢侈品或必需品? 我們是否了解藝術家 每天的日常是怎樣的? 或者我們仍然相信, 藝術家不論過得多辛苦 都還是很快樂,只因為 他們在追求自己的熱情?
In a few years, I plan to send my brothers the following email: "Dear brothers, I hope this message finds you well. I am emailing to let you know that I am doing great and so are hundreds of thousands of artists who are being valued more culturally and financially and getting enough funding to focus on their crafts and create more art. I appreciate all of your support. Couldn't have done it without you."
我計畫要在幾年後寄 這封電子郵件給我的兄弟: 「親愛的兄弟們,希望你們 收到這個訊息時,一切安好。 我寫這封信是要讓 你們知道,我很好, 其他數十萬名藝術家也都很好, 他們現在不論在文化上 或財務上都更受重視, 有足夠的資金,讓他們能 專注在自己的職業上, 創作更多的藝術。 我感謝你們所有的支持。 沒有你們,我是辦不到的。」
Thank you.
謝謝。
(Applause)
(掌聲)