A Statistical Profile of Artists in Canada in 2016 (With Summary Information about Cultural Workers)

March 27, 2019

Hill Strategies Research today released A Statistical Profile of Artists in Canada in 2016, a look at the working lives of artists in Canada, including statistics on:

• overall number of artists;
• artists by occupation;
• demographic information (including gender, education, age, Indigenous people, members of racialized groups, etc);
• self-employment rates;
• incomes
• industries where artists work

The report also provides a brief summary of the situation of cultural workers in Canada (a broader grouping which includes but extends well beyond artists).

Some highlights:

• The number of artists (183,200) is greater than the labour force in automotive manufacturing (154,100) and the utilities sector (144,900).
• Women comprise 53% of artists, higher than the proportion of all workers (48%).
• Racialized Canadians are under-represented among artists (15%) compared with all workers (21%).
• Indigenous and immigrant workers are slightly under-represented among artists: Indigenous (3.3% of artists and 4.0% of all workers) and immigrants (21% of artists and 23% of all workers).
• 52% of artists are self-employed, compared with only 12% of all Canadian workers.
• The median individual income of Canada’s artists is $23,100, or 45% less than all Canadian workers ($41,900). Cultural workers have median individual incomes of $39,300, or 6% less than all workers.
• The median income of artists is much higher in the information and cultural industries grouping ($42,300) than in the other industry sectors: $18,700 in arts, entertainment, and recreation, $17,100 in educational services, and $28,300 in all other industries.
• There are 799,100 cultural workers in Canada, including heritage occupations (such as librarians, museum workers, and archivists), cultural occupations (such as designers, editors, and architects), and the nine arts occupations.
• Cultural workers account for exactly 4% of the overall labour force. In other words, one in every 25 Canadian workers has a cultural occupation.

Co-funded by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Department of Canadian Heritage, and the Ontario Arts Council as part of Hill Research Strategies’ Statistical Insights on the Arts series, the report is based on a custom data request from the 2016 long-form census, which classifies people in the occupation in which they worked the most hours during the census reference week (May 1 to 7, 2016).

A Statistical Profile of Artists in Canada in 2016 (With Summary Information about Cultural Workers)

Executive Summary

This report focusses on the working lives of artists in Canada, including statistics on:

• The overall number of artists
• Artists by occupation
• Demographic information such as gender, education, age, Indigenous people, members of racialized groups, and more
• Self-employment rates
• Total incomes, employment incomes, and household incomes
• The industries where artists work, with a focus on the three most common sectors for artists: 1) arts, entertainment, and recreation; 2) educational services; and 3) information and cultural industries

The report also provides a brief summary of the situation of cultural workers in Canada (a broader grouping which includes but extends well beyond artists).

The report is based on a custom data request from the 2016 long-form census, which classifies people in the occupation in which they worked the most hours during the census reference week (May 1 to 7, 2016).

Over 180,000 Artists in Canada

There are 183,200 artists (who spent more time at their art than at any other occupation in May of 2016), representing almost 1% of the overall Canadian labour force (0.92%). In other words, 1 in every 109 Canadian workers is an artist.

The number of artists (183,200) is greater than the labour force in automotive manufacturing (154,100) and the utilities sector (144,900), as shown in Figure ES1.

Nine Occupations Included as “Artists”

Nine detailed occupation codes are included in the count of artists. The occupations are shown from largest to smallest in Figure ES2.

Key Demographic and Employment Characteristics

The report contains other key findings related to the working lives of artists:

• Women comprise 53% of artists, higher than the proportion of all workers (48%).
• A much larger percentage of artists than all workers have a bachelor’s degree or higher (44% vs. 27%).
• 52% of artists are self-employed, compared with only 12% of all Canadian workers.
• The age distribution of artists is fairly similar to all workers: nearly one-half of artists (47%) are 45 years of age or older, similar to the 45% of all workers. However, more artists than all workers are 65 years of age or older (12% vs. 6%).
• Racialized Canadians are under-represented among artists (15%) compared with all workers (21%).
• Indigenous and immigrant workers are slightly under-represented among artists: Indigenous People (3.3% of artists and 4.0% of all workers) and immigrants (21% of artists and 23% of all workers).

Median Income of Artists is 45% Lower Than All Canadian Workers

As shown in Figure ES3, the median individual income of Canada’s artists is $23,100, or 45% less than all Canadian workers ($41,900). Cultural workers have median individual incomes of $39,300, or 6% less than all workers.

This summary focuses on median incomes, which are believed to provide a better indication of the typical situation of artists than the average (i.e., the “mean”), which is more strongly affected by a few individuals with very high incomes.

The main component of total income, for most workers, is employment income (including wages, salaries, and self-employment earnings). A typical artist has employment income of $15,000, a figure that is 59% lower than the median of all workers ($36,700).

For the first time in 2016, household income statistics were requested from the census. The findings from this analysis are somewhat less dire than the individual income statistics. A typical artist has a household income of $56,400, 34% lower than all workers ($84,900).

Median Incomes Vary Substantially by Occupation and Industry

There is a vast difference in median incomes between the nine arts occupations. From lowest to highest, the median incomes by occupation are:

• Dancers: $15,100 (64% lower than the median income of all workers)
• Other performers not classified elsewhere: $15,500 (63% lower)
• Actors and comedians: $17,500 (58% lower)
• Musicians and singers: $17,600 (58% lower)
• Visual artists: $19,300 (54% lower)
• Artisans and craftspeople: $20,300 (52% lower)
• Conductors, composer, and arrangers: $28,700 (32% lower)
• Authors and writers: $38,000 (9% lower)
• Producers, directors, choreographers, and related occupations: $48,700 (16% higher than the median income of all workers)

The median income of artists is much higher in the information and cultural industries grouping ($42,300) than in the other industry sectors: $18,700 in arts, entertainment, and recreation, $17,100 in educational services, and $28,300 in all other industries.

800,000 Cultural Workers

There are 799,100 cultural workers in Canada, including heritage occupations (such as librarians, museum workers, and archivists), cultural occupations (such as designers, editors, and architects), and the nine arts occupations. Cultural workers account for exactly 4% of the overall labour force. In other words, one in every 25 Canadian workers has a cultural occupation.

The number of cultural workers (799,100) is over two-and-a-half times larger than the labour force in real estate (306,600), about double the labour force on farms (386,400), and slightly higher than the labour force in the wholesale trade industry (706,400).

About this Report

This report contains statistics on the working lives of artists and cultural workers analyzed from the 2016 long-form census. The first section of the full report looks at artists as a group, with summary statistics about cultural workers, while the second section provides information about each of the nine arts occupations.

Readers should keep in mind a number of important aspects of census data. When the census was conducted in 2016, Canadians 15 and older were classified in the occupation in which they worked the most hours during the census reference week (May 1 to 7, 2016). If they did not work during that week, they were classified based on the job at which they worked the longest since January 1, 2015. If they did not work at all during that period, they were excluded from the experienced labour force (and the statistics in this report). The census collected income information for 2015, the most recent full calendar year.

It is also important to note that, due to major changes in methods between the 2011 National Household Survey and the 2016 census, data in this report are not comparable to previous reports.

Some aspects of the census have particular relevance in capturing the working lives of artists:

• Artists who spent more time at another occupation than at their artwork during the reference week would be classified in the other occupation. The census does not capture information about secondary occupations.
• Each occupation includes individuals who are employed or self-employed.
• Artists who teach in post-secondary, secondary, or elementary schools are classified as professors or teachers, not in artistic occupations. Instructors and teachers in some settings (such as private arts schools, academies, and conservatories) are included as “artists”.

Full methodological notes can be found in Appendix 2.

Subsequent reports will examine artists in Canadian provinces and municipalities, as well as demographic differences in the situations of artists.

(Via Hill Strategies Research)