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Art Workers: Material conditions and labour struggles in contemporary art practice
What are the material conditions of contemporary art production? Why is exhibition practice based on the unpaid labour of artists? Why do artists pay to make exhibitions instead of getting paid? Why do art workers have no health insurance and social security? How to struggle against precarious labour? What are the historical and contemporary models of artworkers‘ organising?
The publication Art Workers – Material Conditions and Labour Struggles in Contemporary Art Practice presents research on the economic and social situation of art workers in the contexts of Estonia, Finland and Sweden. By analysing issues such as unwaged labour, gallery rent and social security, the publication addresses a composition of problems that are frequently framed as constitutive aspects of precarity in contemporary art economy. In many contexts, precisely these problems have served as entry points into public debates and collective practices of self-organisation. The contextualisation of labour struggles and resistive practices forms the second emphasis of the book, mapping out contemporary and historical forms of labour organising in the realm of art and social movements.
The publication Art Workers – Material Conditions and Labour Struggles in Contemporary Art Practice presents research on the economic and social situation of art workers in the contexts of Estonia, Finland and Sweden. By analysing issues such as unwaged labour, gallery rent and social security, the publication addresses a composition of problems that are frequently framed as constitutive aspects of precarity in contemporary art economy. In many contexts, precisely these problems have served as entry points into public debates and collective practices of self-organisation. The contextualisation of labour struggles and resistive practices forms the second emphasis of the book, mapping out contemporary and historical forms of labour organising in the realm of art and social movements.
232 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2015
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
May 6, 2026
Was very excited that this book was added to Goodreads just as I was finishing it :)
It's a good compilation of texts on struggles of artists to be seen as workers in some areas of Europe in around 2010-2025. Although it's focusing more heavily on artists' work conditions in Finland and Estonia at that time, the topic itself is not new and relatable for artists/culture workers in much broader contexts.
I liked how much space is given to vast struggles to be paid as an artist. Especially the fact that in many countries (in Europe at least) artistic work is not seen as actual work and therefore doesn't enjoy basic guaranties, such as access to health care. Or that contracts with art institutions very often does not include paying artists that maybe are making art specifically for the exhibition they were invited to. Or in case of Finland, it is even customary that artists pay the institutions to exhibit.
The last article in the book tries to imagine possible near future scenarios for artists. What I found lacking are scenarios for creative work that are not gloomy. If we are imagining things, why is it so hard to imagine, that conditions could improve?
Overall, I liked the book and would recommend it to read to anyone who thinks, that artists are a privileged category of people in society living on inspiration.
It's a good compilation of texts on struggles of artists to be seen as workers in some areas of Europe in around 2010-2025. Although it's focusing more heavily on artists' work conditions in Finland and Estonia at that time, the topic itself is not new and relatable for artists/culture workers in much broader contexts.
I liked how much space is given to vast struggles to be paid as an artist. Especially the fact that in many countries (in Europe at least) artistic work is not seen as actual work and therefore doesn't enjoy basic guaranties, such as access to health care. Or that contracts with art institutions very often does not include paying artists that maybe are making art specifically for the exhibition they were invited to. Or in case of Finland, it is even customary that artists pay the institutions to exhibit.
The last article in the book tries to imagine possible near future scenarios for artists. What I found lacking are scenarios for creative work that are not gloomy. If we are imagining things, why is it so hard to imagine, that conditions could improve?
Overall, I liked the book and would recommend it to read to anyone who thinks, that artists are a privileged category of people in society living on inspiration.
Displaying 1 of 1 review