Hustling, hybridity and changing attitudes to work in the arts

Sim, Nicola

Abstract

For years, entry-level placement schemes have been one of the cultural sector’s main answers to broadening the diversity of organisations and recruiting younger practitioners who may not access positions through standard routes. While unpaid
internships have been rightly phased out, in their place are paid initiatives that seek to shake up the narrow pipeline for accessing arts jobs and foster a more representative workforce. These inclusive recruitment schemes are sometimes criticised for only making a difference at the junior end of organisations, and for only making a temporary difference to individuals, who still have to navigate the competitive, largely white, middle class, highly educated art world once their placement ends. This is a risk all arts institutions should be concerned about. The short-termism baked into these programmes means that younger, under-represented employees are also the least secure.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 9, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Jul 6, 2022
• Publication Date: Jul 6, 2022
• Deposit Date: Jan 13, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 4, 2023
• Journal: Engage
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Issue: 46
• Pages: 10-17
• Keywords: creative careers
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/10344639
• Publisher URL: https://engage.org/journals/engage-46/