Dematerialization of labor in the art of metamodernism

The paper considers the problem of dematerialization of the artist’s labor in the situation of metamodernism. It is stated that the idea of labor, which has changed throughout history, undergoes significant metamorphoses in modern conditions. Artistic work is gaining ever-greater freedom from the material labor; the criterion of “done” in the modern artistic environment is losing its significance. The features of the situation, which is commonly called “metamodernism”, its differences from postmodernism, are examined. The author connects the process of abandoning labor and moving towards the dematerialization of artistic creativity with the emergence of a new metamodern discourse. As an illustration, examples are given from various trends in art (readymade, performance, network art). The relevance of the work is due to the fact that contemporary art, abandoning the irony of postmodernism, is looking for new ways of expression. The dematerialization of labor in this case is one of the options for the further development of artistic creativity.