The Future of Creative Work

Creative work is characterized by multiplicity, fluidity and for many people, precarity and insecurity in the eponymous ‘gig economy’. COVID-19, Brexit and the increased cost of living might be thought of as ‘crises within a crisis’ in this sense, revealing and accentuating structural and sectoral inequalities, highlighting the value but also the vulnerabilities of creative work.

Our research explores questions such as:

• What is needed to develop and maintain the necessary infrastructure for a fair, equitable and sustainable future for creative and cultural work, and workers?

• Philip Hancock, Rosemary Klich, Holly Maples, and Melissa Tyler are currently collaborating with Arts Council England on a project focusing on the experiences and needs of cultural freelancers in England.
• Performing during/after lockdown: A study of the impact of COVID-19 on self-employed live performers in the UK
• Philip Hancock and Melissa Tyler in Essex Business School lead this British Academy funded research project documenting the impact of COVID on self-employed live performers. The research, running from October 2020 to September 2022, reports not only on performing during the pandemic but also on what performers and the industry might need in order to secure a sustainable future for live performance in the UK. 
• Holly Maples in the East 15 Acting School is the lead on a UKRI ESRC funded project examining the impact of COVID-19 on UK Theatre Freelancers from July 2020 - January 2022. The project examines the pre-existing precarity within the UK theatre industry for freelance artworkers investigating transformations to the workforce, digital practice and internal scrutiny on wider industry precarity and inequality from members of the industry.

Our research is carried out in consultation with:  

• Arts Council England
• Equity
• The Musicians’ Union 
• Freelancers Make Theatre Work