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May Day is a day to celebrate workers’ rights and protest the erosion of workers’ rights. We’ve seen a steep decline in workers’ rights and relative income since Reagan began his reign of union busting and corporate favoritism more than 30 years ago. The issues of wealth and power being concentrated in the hands of people who corrupt the system in their favor extend to the art world. As a practicing artist I know how difficult it is to make a comfortable living in the art world for 99% of the participants while a small group of elite control and manipulate the system and market. I try to be very populist In my art practice and avoid putting myself at the mercy of the art world’s power players. The union workers employed in the art world don’t have a choice but to deal with the most successful and powerful businesses. In a perfect example of the folly of “Trickle Down” economics, Sotheby’s, the art world’s most successful auction house, has chosen to mistreat its union labor force in an effort to divert a bit more money to the top. Read more here and sign the petition to support the Sotheby’s art handlers. Thanks for caring.
-Shepard Fairey
