Hi, I think I can answer (I am Kyle). tl;dr: It barely worked for many years, but I have since been able to find more & larger grants for my art, and get better paying consulting work on the side. Full story—first, income. Some examples from my books around 2011: $10k for a 3-month residency in Japan, $4k for 2 weeks of 14 hour days implementing computer vision and generative graphics as part of a team developing an interactive installation, $3k for 3 weeks of generative sound design work, $500 traveling overseas to give an hour-long talk, $500 traveling overseas to lead a full-day 3d scanning workshop for artists, $50 for an art+tech blog post. Regarding expenses: At the time I was living in a one-floor, 4bd apartment with three other people, $1815 divided 4 ways, about $450. I spent a similar amount each month on food, transportation, and utilities combined. I did not have healthcare. My artwork was digital so it did not require regular material costs, and I had no studio space. Total was closer to $20-25k/year due to additional costs and because I had $170k of college loans and no financial support. All together, I was barely in the black: I had between 8-12 jobs totaling $20-40k each year, from 2010-2014. My bank account hovered between $1-4k until 2015 when I started pitching larger projects that saw more income and also allowed me to start paying others. Hope that answers your questions, happy to share more.