A new report has found that winners of cash prizes within the art industry face a double standard compared to winners of other types of cash prizes.

Research manager at the Australia Institute Press, Alice Grundy, pointed out that many winners, including writers, make very little from their careers and rely on these cash prizes.

“Prizes are counted as income … if you get an art prize, then it makes your income for that year look really huge, and a lot of artists aren’t especially savvy when it comes to managing finances, so it can put them in a really sticky spot for the next few years with the tax department thinking that they’re earning much more money than they actually are,” she told Sofie Formica on 4BC Afternoons.

Ms Grundy also pointed out that it’s become a lot harder for younger artists to make money and has called on the Federal Government to invest more in the industry.

“We’re talking about a government that gave $10 billion in fossil fuel subsidies last year. If we’ve decided that we want more fossil fuel to the tune of $10 billion, I think we can asses whether or not we want more art for a tiny fraction of that amount,” she added.

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