Made HERE: Season 3

For the issue of Art & Commerce, MADE HERE explores the efforts of performing artists to maintain their creative identity while moving between performance arenas within New York City, adapting their craft to different media, and working with varied institutions. The artists in these episodes strive to balance their creative freedom while making a living and paying the bills.

Uptown/Downtown
What is the real difference between Uptown and Downtown? There are aesthetic and financial differences that create a separation between Uptown and Downtown in NYC, yet many artists move comfortably within both arenas. And do the distinctions matter if both scenes are fostering exciting, unique artwork?

Stage & Screen
Artists today often work within multiple media over the course of their careers. Our featured artists speak about adjusting their performances to the different platforms, balancing their work within multiple media, and the financial necessity that can dictate which medium the artist chooses.

Artists & Institutions
Institutions can help foster strong artist communities, lend a home for artists to build their work, and support emerging artists… but they can also stifle the creative process. Some of our artists have thrived and struggled when working within institutions, while others have gone on to create institutions of their own.

This month, MADE HERE explores criticism and how artists interact with it. The artists in these episodes have navigated a seemingly endless stream of criticism over the course of their careers—using negative reviews to better their performance, weeding out criticism that does not have at heart the best interest of art, and learning to maintain their identity while under a critical lens. The situation is even more complex in today’s critical landscape where everyone can have a blog and post an opinion.

The Review
Reviews are an accepted aspect of being a performing artist. Positive reviews can provide exposure to emerging artists and in some cases can even launch an artist’s career. On the other hand, artists have to learn not to take criticism personally and strive to maintain their artistic identity while constantly being judged on their performance.

The Critic
Critics can often be viewed as the enemy of the artist because they are judges on the outside. Yet for every critic who gives rash, thoughtless criticism, there are many more who work to further the artistic cause. The artists in this episode have learned to discern valid, thoughtful criticism from hurtful criticism that does not have the best interests of the performing arts world in mind.

DIY
In today’s world, anyone with an opinion and Internet access can be a critic. Blogging allows for a wider range of opinions to be heard and has become a crucial tool for artists to gain exposure. However, DIY criticism does not have the quality control of traditional review vehicles and can often add to the shallow, knee-jerk criticism that can hurt artists more than it helps.

This month, MADE HERE explores the issue of health. In these episodes, we see how the artists have had to struggle within the American healthcare system, often going without coverage or taking jobs unrelated to their art in order to have health insurance. Also, these artists discuss how they have maintained healthy lifestyles while working in the hectic New York City art scene and balanced the stress of work while staying healthy.

Healthcare
In America, today healthcare is a constant struggle for most artists. Artists often have to go without insurance, scramble to find piecemeal coverage, and work full-time jobs on top of their art-making in order to get health insurance. The artists in this episode share their struggles and solutions.

The Body
For performing artists, their bodies are important because they are their primary instruments and sources of income. Artists must maintain their health while simultaneously dealing with stress and doing physically demanding work.

Balance
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle can be difficult for artists working in the hectic New York City art scene. The artists in this episode discuss their stresses and the sacrifices they have made in order to achieve their artistic goals.

What do you dream of doing next?
We’ve made it to the end of Season 3. You’ve been such an amazing audience, we wanted to give you a bonus episode. Watch many of the artists in MADE HERE as they let us in on their dreams for the future.