I’ve not been living long enough to be able to put forth much experiential or historical evidence in support of this, but over the last two years as a freelancer I’ve come to reluctantly accept that capitalism has nearly killed the artisan. In its place we find soulless laborers, toiling robots, cheap conformists with idle hands and mouths to feed. This is the most difficult thing I struggle with in my quest to find a purpose, that all the romance and charm, passion and creativity have been removed from our processes.

We are asked to become human-shaped cogs who bear only the will of our wage-vomiting masters.

As a freelance designer, I’m lucky enough to own my time and sell the products of my labor for what I believe them to be worth. I’m in a much more reasonable position than most workers, but even as such I’m still very negatively affected by the pervasiveness of the mass-marketing, mass-producing culture, especially in regards to the sort of expectations it places in the minds of clients and potential clients.

Recently, in a fit of utter disgust, I googled “I hate freelancing” hoping for an article showcasing some proper commiseration, something that would allow me to breathe and say, “Thank God, I’m not alone.” To my surprise, the top result was a post titled “I hate freelance designers.” (If that wasn’t a sign I’m in the wrong business, I don’t know what is.) More surprising still was that this post was written by a freelance designer. Even knowing the high likelihood that whatever was contained within the post would piss me off, I felt inclined to read it.

The article contained tips for freelance designers that, if followed, would ensure that they maintained a good reputation and continued to attract clients. The second tip started as such:

“Follow the clients instructions to the bone. Don’t cut corners, don’t be creative, don’t crap where you eat. You’re a designer, not fucking Houdini.”

To which I adamantly protested, “Oh, but I *am* fucking Houdini!”

Am I to believe that designers are meant to be bullshit corporate hacks, obeying, without question, the unsatisfying monotony and conformity requested by unskilled entrepreneurs, marketers and management for the sole purpose of pushing wholly unremarkable products on poor souls who have no real use for them? Are freelancers in general just glorified cogs relegated to collectively fellating the flailing dicks of corporate America? I think not. If I did, I wouldn’t be playing this game.

Potential clients (whether small businesses, large companies, or single-person operations) approach me with this view, though. “He is not an artist,” they say, “but a necessary cog in our machine and he should stay in place and do as we say since we’ll pay him.” And what I do clearly cannot be art, but dead soulless commodity. Surely a designer is just a prostitute who paints.

Bullshit.

I am a skilled worker and I am an artisan and I expect to be treated as such even if this means never again being afforded the opportunity to work. I am not an assembly line or a support team or a servant to be at anyone’s beck and call. If someone knows exactly what they want such-and-such a thing to look like and how they want it to operate, they don’t need a designer. They need an assembler. This is the difference between the architect and the slave.

The architect draws the plans, designs the building, chooses the materials, defines the details and orchestrates the construction. His expertise is required, praised, appreciated, necessary. Few people would refute the claim that architecture is art and the architect an artist.

The slave, on the other hand, is a brick mover, a mortar layer, an assembler who operates by threat of the whip. He has no part in the design of what he builds, though his weathered hands likely have some advice worth following. He is only expected to mindlessly obey the direction of his masters, whatever their will, however uneducated their design or futile their wishes so that he might go on to live another day.

Freelancers ought not be the slaves.

I can’t fault anybody for doing what it takes for them to eat, but, speaking for myself, I can no longer count myself in this number who so faithfully balance the non-working entrepreneurs on their backs. I want, first, for what I do to be just, second, for what I do to be appreciated and, third, for what I do to go toward some meaningful cause rather than perpetuating the private tyrannies and lining the pockets of lazy profiteers.

Design, I do believe, has the ability to shape the world. It can influence people to actions they might not have otherwise taken. This is a very dangerous thing. A designer can convince you to buy another iPod or to participate in food drives and unfortunately most of the truly talented designers have been lost to shit-peddling because it pays better.

If you freelance or plan to freelance, take the time to think about what you can do with your abilities to actually make a difference in the world while you earn your living. If anyone has any ideas, let me know. I’m still trying to figure it out myself.

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3. The Unfortunate Pervasiveness of Object Over Imagination
4. Diary of a Wage Slave Rebel: When Preparation Meets Imogen Heap