ABSTRACT
The artists took on secondary jobs to pay for high rent and living costs, with the consequence of both the time and space for their work being under severe pressure. This chapter explores the effect of such pressures on the artists' work and their sense of themselves, and in particular, how this challenged more traditional conceptions of the artist. The artists who had gallery representation supplemented their work income through sales of their art. The galleries representing the artists were mostly in the Shoreditch/Dalston area and had a moderate level of prestige, primarily representing early-to-mid-career artists. The division of labour associated with the gallery system meant that artists were not directly involved in selling and marketing their work; despite its commercial nature, artists must be seen to maintain their distance from sales. The paintings themselves are produced through a painstakingly laborious process, beginning with detailed three-dimensional computer drawings, which are then transferred to canvas.
