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The labor market returns of being an artist: evidence from the United States, 2006–2021

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  • Christos A. Makridis

    (Columbia University
    Stanford University)

Abstract

Using individual-level data from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) between 2006 and 2021, I study the labor market experiences of artists. First, I find a decline in the relative earnings of artists to non-artists from zero to a 15% disadvantage. After controlling for demographic differences, the decline is sharper, declining from a 15% earnings disadvantage to 30%. That the inclusion of demographic controls raises the earnings gap suggests there is positive selection into the arts. Second, these differences decline in magnitude to 4.4%, but remain statistically significant, after exploiting variation among artists and non-artists in the same industry-year and major occupation. Third, when restricting the set of individuals to those with at least a college degree, those with a fine arts degree also incur an earnings and employment penalty even if they work in the arts. These results highlight the increasing financial precariousness of artists over the past decade.

Suggested Citation

  • Christos A. Makridis, 2025. "The labor market returns of being an artist: evidence from the United States, 2006–2021," Journal of Cultural Economics, Springer;The Association for Cultural Economics International, vol. 49(1), pages 1-21, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jculte:v:49:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1007_s10824-023-09490-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s10824-023-09490-x
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Artists; Culture; Earnings; Employment; Wages;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J38 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Public Policy
    • J44 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Professional Labor Markets and Occupations
    • Z11 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economics of the Arts and Literature

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