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The Swedish Arts Grants Committee’s initiative to improve artists’ working conditions

Here, you will find our advice and experiences on safeguarding and improving artists’ conditions.

© Helena Shutrick

Bild gjord av Helena Shutrick. Ett skrivbord med dataskärm. Linjal och häftstift framför.

The Swedish Arts Grants Committee has initiated the initiative “Stärkta villkor för konstnärer” to raise awareness about the need to improve artists’ professional conditions.

Our initiative aims to make the conditions for working artists more stable, contributing to the fulfilment of the national cultural policy objectives of independence and participation.

Experience and inspiration for this initiative are drawn from recommendations in the EU report “The status and working conditions of artists and cultural and creative professionals” (opens in a new tab) and from projects to improve artists’ conditions in various EU member states.

Strengthened conditions for artists, for example, imply a common view that artistic practice is a professional work that includes several different types of elements carried out by professional artists.

Therefore, artists, as professionals, should, for example, receive:

  • fair payment for work done,
  • proportionate compensation for their copyright,
  • equal access to security systems,
  • reasonable contractual and working conditions.

Artists should also receive a proportionate and reasonable share of the economic development in cultural and creative industries where artists’ competence and creation form the basis for the sectors’ products and services.

The work for strengthened conditions is a collaboration between public actors, artists’ organizations and active artists that is based on:

  • the public sector sets a good example and promotes strengthened conditions through initiatives, recommendations and principles
  • artists’ organizations have the opportunity to participate proactively in the work with strengthened conditions
  • artists have a solidarity and transparent attitude to promote the conditions of the professional group.

IETM, the International Network for the Performing Arts, has published recommendations (opens in a new tab) on how the different actors can collaborate and what role each actor has.