Transformation of creative employment: a case study of Moscow non-governmental art centers

Abstract

In 2000—2010, Moscow cultural environment was undergoing considerable changes related to the emergence of major non-governmental cultural institutions (Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Vinzavod, Strelka Institute, et cet.). The paper is devoted to the labor practices of these institutions. In Great Britain and Western Europe, creative/cultural working conditions were properly studied: both qualitative and quantitative research showed that the institutions were characterized by high risk levels, precarious employment, non-formal labor practices and work arrangement, and gender, ethnic and social inequality. As to Russia and the post-Soviet space, the researchers, with few exceptions, did not pay enough attention to this topic. The paper based on interviews with Moscow art centers’ employees and workplace observations describes working conditions and professional identities of the Russian creative workers.