The Living Room Theatre in association with Gleebooks and the Inner West Creative Network

What happens when art is treated as an industry rather than a public good?

Justin O’Connor, author, keynote speaker, and global expert on cultural policy, explores how culture can move beyond the logic of the creative economy and be recognised for its human, societal, and civilising value. Drawing on his book Culture is Not an Industry: Reclaiming Art and Culture for the Common Good (2024), he reframes the public good not as a number, but as a space where we understand ourselves, recognise each other, and imagine change.

Justin O'Connor is Professor of Cultural Economy at Adelaide University and Visiting Professor at the School of Cultural Management, Shanghai Jiaotong University and has been working in the field of cultural policy and theory since 1990. His work represents a critical engagement with cultural policy, especially around “cultural and creative industries” and the creative city. Starting in Manchester in the 1990s, his policy and academic work have developed to take in Europe, Russia, China and South East Asia. He has worked for UNESCO “Expert Facility” on the 2005 Convention, and more recently developing a new agenda for culture at the United Nations. He is an author, a sought-after keynote speaker and a global expert on cultural policy development. Justin combines his research practice with his dedication to support governments and jurisdictions globally to address complex policy questions. With his work on Reset and his new book, Culture is Not an Industry, Justin seeks to move cultural policy away from creative economy towards a full restatement of culture as a public good and its centrality to any civilised, just society.

Presented by The Living Room Theatre, whose work for 25 years celebrates art from the edges and the quiet, lasting impact it leaves.