Do give up your day job
Basic income for artists, and other stories
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 16684167 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Justin O’connor (0000-0002-8224-621X, The University of Adelaide, corresponding author), Sam Whiting (0000-0003-2747-089X, RMIT University), Tully Barnett (0000-0003-0269-5814, Adelaide University), Tully Barnet (The University of Adelaide) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-16 |
| Publication date | 2026-04-08 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Cultural Trends (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0954-8963 • E-ISSN: 1469-3690 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/09548963.2026.2655376 |
| OpenAlex | W7152017190 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 39 |
In the decade leading up to the Covid-19 pandemic, it seemed that Universal Basic Income (UBI) had burst through into the Overton window of acceptable ideas. The cultural sector suffered particularly harshly in the pandemic, yet in some countries parts of the sector were kept afloat by both cash transfers given to those affected by pandemic job losses, and by more targeted transfers aimed at the cultural sector. Consequently, many in the cultural sector embraced the idea of a “Basic Income for Artists” (BIA) as a solution to the financial challenges they collectively faced, often linked conceptually and politically to the wider claims of social equity and justice represented by a fully universal basic income programme. This paper addresses the complexities of debate around Basic Income for Artists (BIA) and Universal Basic Income (UBI) more broadly, offering an alternative and critical perspective.
Basic income · Comprehensive income · Income in kind · Low income · Art Education and Development · Crafts, Textile, and Design · Cultural Industries and Urban Development
Public Things
Basic Income
Cultural Policy
Culture is not an industry
Culture is bad for you
Cultural Democracy, Cultural Equity, and Cultural Policy
Unconditional Freedom
The Human Condition
Basic income for creative justice
Cultural labour, income support, and the welfare state
Basic Income in Ireland
Culture as foundational
Everyday creativity and cultural policy
From public good to public value
WeAreViable, aren’t we? Music careers, state support, and the political feasibility of a Basic Income for the Arts
Basic Income for the Arts pilot scheme – an Irish case study
Towards equal creative freedom
Artists and their poor
Fire, pestilence and the extractive economy
A plague upon your howling”
The opportunity cost of an artist’s working life
Basic income for artists programs
The New Spirit of Capitalism
Beyond Capitalism—2
Inequality and World Political Landscapes
Subjectivity, culture and the datafication of music
Labor Republicanism and the Transformation of Work
The Problem with Work
Re-politicising the future of work
In the Social Factory
The art of the public
Cultural work and contributive justice
A capitalist road to communism
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |