In order to be defined as art, the object in question should hold no practical utility. That is the rule of thumb considered for determining whether an object qualifies as a piece of art or not. Artisans generally tend to focus on creating the best possible art that their talent allows. However, in addition to focusing on their artistic abilities, in this day and age, artists also have to include an element of pragmatism into their repertoire.

With the current economic instability, there is a dearth of jobs for young aspiring artists. Therefore, in order to survive, artists have to not only try and create an artistic masterpiece, but also focus on creating something which would sell. Professional degrees and Colleges, like in a bachelor of fine arts school in addition to fine tuning their students’ artistic abilities, educate their students about the finer points of entrepreneurship.  Colleges also enhance their students’ network of contacts, enabling them to get in touch with people who can play a vital role in jumpstarting a student’s career.

With the scarcity of available jobs, more and more artists turn towards establishing their own galleries and professional degrees equip artists to better deal with these situations.

However, there is another side to the story. A large number of experts believe that joining art schools may not be the best way to go in the current scenario. A large number of people are of the opinion that joining a M.F.A degree right after your undergraduate studies is not a good idea. Moreover, the current economic turmoil has made a large number of artists flock towards grad school, making the selection process highly competitive. However, for those looking to seek admission into a prestigious art school , their focus should be on setting up a cohesive portfolio as this is the most important consideration in the admission process.