Just because a stereotype exists...particularly an unflattering one...doesn't mean a group's members have to validate it.

The stereotype implies that artists are flaky, late, undependable,  and indecisive.  Like myths, stereotypes must in part be based in truth because at least in this case...it seems to be spot on. I'm saying this as a dancer and an apprentice lighting designer.  I hate the stereotype. I try to discourage it all of the time by making myself crazy trying to fit into a mold that just isn’t possible.

Follow up:

I work in a theater and we are currently tech-ing and lighting a show that opens next week. We are not ready! Artists want everything to be perfect.. As artists we never turn work down. As artists we try to remain completely busy so therefore it is impossible to actually get done ahead of time or even on schedule. Next week's show uses props in every piece and half of them aren’t finished yet. We haven’t hung the net for the aerial piece that was supposed to be done on Sunday. In fact we just finished hanging the metal work for the net to hang off of today. Pre-lighting was supposed to be on Tuesday but nothing is pre-lit. The moon was supposed to be painted and light focused on it by yesterday. I will be staying later tonight to do that.

Now I’m not just whining, I am pleading with the artist community.  Can we please as a people get our stuff together? My grades are suffering because (like other artists) I procrastinated and left my homework to the night before it was due. Then I got called into work to help get everything set-up to hopefully get caught up to the scheduling...see previous paragraph. In a theater that hosts a show every other week this is a common occurrence. I love my job but people lets prove to the world and me that organization is not a lost cause for the artistic community. We barely get recognition for the work we do, so let’s get on top of it.

Ironically, if the world collides with a major asteroid and pigs begin to fly and as a community we artists do get on top of our work load and follow a schedule, it will be short lived because we'll come up with bigger and better creative ideas to try...once we find all the extra time we saved.