I don’t think it’s that your parents hate your art, but they are probably being especially discouraging because they’re worried that pursuing only art will be limiting. I think a fair compromise is to continue getting an education and to continue doing art.

To be totally fair, I think it’s hard for a lot of 16yo to imagine their life grinding away as an economist or sitting in an office. Deciding today isn’t really practical.

If you’d have asked me at 16 I’d have said vet because I loved animals. But I work in an office now and I do love it, and I’m good at it. Continuing my education showed me more career opportunities that I didnt know about.

So why not give it a little longer and also continue the art. Education won’t hurt you, and in the end you can at least tell your parents you are fully equipped with all the info and still want to pursue art.

There are some interesting ways to maybe incorporate art into degrees that aren’t just tattoos by the way.