One of the most disliked aspects of modern life is the tendency toward centralization is the drift toward conglomeration. To its critics, this leads to a world of products made without passion or distinction. Trying to withstand this tidal wave of multinational corporate dominance, independent book publishers hang on almost against all hope.
At the bottom of it the big difference between mass corporate owners and independent owners is quite straightforward. The latter is built upon or run by someone working there out of some sort of interest in actual books. That leaves at least some room for surprising, individualistic books that didn't have to pass a focus group. Perhaps a book will slip into existence based on a refined taste rather than a cross section of consumers.
Many of those who run these houses are graduates of our country's Master of Fine Arts programs. These programs have the traditional role of carrying on the teaching of the craftsmanship needed for the finest work in various arts. Conventionally, these graduates might have hoped for careers teaching their art as a college professor or perhaps high school teacher. This would pay the bills while the degreed artist grew steadily more renowned among his or her peers.
As the number of MFA graduates has grown, the limited number of teaching positions has come to many to spell the end of the old dream of a cushy teaching career. Meanwhile, outside academe but just barely, the size of audience for nearly all the fine arts is in a generational free fall. It grows clearer to each graduating class that the very infrastructure of fine arts needs support.
A growing number of graduates sees the business side of art not just as a fallback to the academy but as the arts' true battlefield in this century. Too few without gray hair seem to be visiting the symphony anymore. More MFA programs each year offer courses in the production of little magazines and small volumes of poetry.
A lot of the difficulty lies in the ubiquity of the personal computer. There's no question that it has made the arts more widely available. However, the internet has proven itself a liability to efforts to monetize much fine art.
There is worry about an even more direct effect of technology that tends to depress the consumption of challenging art. The public shows signs of having its attention span shortened by the ever more frenetic pacing of mass media. It is not uncommon to come across young people who cannot tolerate black and white movies, much less silent film. Those living such a quick-twitch lifestyle are not likely to sit through a modern dance performance, or even to hear of it.
The new century both gives and takes, and the new generation of artists is savvy to exploit any opportunity. Many who keep the small houses alive, working against the cultural headwind, are nostalgic for a more culturally appreciative past. But tomorrow appears to be the domain of the self-publisher, his and her own author, marketer, publisher, and, often less fortunately, editor.
At the bottom of it the big difference between mass corporate owners and independent owners is quite straightforward. The latter is built upon or run by someone working there out of some sort of interest in actual books. That leaves at least some room for surprising, individualistic books that didn't have to pass a focus group. Perhaps a book will slip into existence based on a refined taste rather than a cross section of consumers.
Many of those who run these houses are graduates of our country's Master of Fine Arts programs. These programs have the traditional role of carrying on the teaching of the craftsmanship needed for the finest work in various arts. Conventionally, these graduates might have hoped for careers teaching their art as a college professor or perhaps high school teacher. This would pay the bills while the degreed artist grew steadily more renowned among his or her peers.
As the number of MFA graduates has grown, the limited number of teaching positions has come to many to spell the end of the old dream of a cushy teaching career. Meanwhile, outside academe but just barely, the size of audience for nearly all the fine arts is in a generational free fall. It grows clearer to each graduating class that the very infrastructure of fine arts needs support.
A growing number of graduates sees the business side of art not just as a fallback to the academy but as the arts' true battlefield in this century. Too few without gray hair seem to be visiting the symphony anymore. More MFA programs each year offer courses in the production of little magazines and small volumes of poetry.
A lot of the difficulty lies in the ubiquity of the personal computer. There's no question that it has made the arts more widely available. However, the internet has proven itself a liability to efforts to monetize much fine art.
There is worry about an even more direct effect of technology that tends to depress the consumption of challenging art. The public shows signs of having its attention span shortened by the ever more frenetic pacing of mass media. It is not uncommon to come across young people who cannot tolerate black and white movies, much less silent film. Those living such a quick-twitch lifestyle are not likely to sit through a modern dance performance, or even to hear of it.
The new century both gives and takes, and the new generation of artists is savvy to exploit any opportunity. Many who keep the small houses alive, working against the cultural headwind, are nostalgic for a more culturally appreciative past. But tomorrow appears to be the domain of the self-publisher, his and her own author, marketer, publisher, and, often less fortunately, editor.
