https://peertube.intrapology.com/videos/watch/3fa03f7b-006c-43c9-8d9d-228a853becc0 In The Good Place, a philosophical comedy TV show set in the afterlife, there is a moment where a character objects to someone characterising his career before death as "Failed DJ". "No, I was pre-successful!" claims the DJ, despite the fact he is now dead and therefore out of opportunities to headline festivals or get record deals. The future success he anticipated already hasn't happened. The arts and culture sector doesn't use the term "pre-successful". It calls us "emerging artists". When an arts organisation selects a cohort of applicants to be supported as part of an emerging artists programme, they are making a public statement that these individuals could, potentially, become more than they are. What does that even mean? Every working artist I know who has aged out of the category of 'emerging' continues to struggle in much the same way as any 'emerging' artist. What are we working towards? A high-profile award? Commissions that pay enough to live on? Enough value in the eyes of collectors for us to easily make a living? Enough fame to allow us to easily crowdfund our next project? In any cohort of 'emerging' artists, how many can we realistically expect to ever reach this kind of stability? For many people, art is about being in the moment. But support is only given to artists bason on who we might be in the future. Tue, 10 Nov 2026 11:06:58 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://peertube.intrapology.com https://peertube.intrapology.com/lazy-static/avatars/f1b99795-1a8a-4d55-90bb-08c657f2b58a.png https://peertube.intrapology.com/videos/watch/3fa03f7b-006c-43c9-8d9d-228a853becc0 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://peertube.intrapology.com/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.