Australian artists will receive better recognition for the work they do and increased workplace protection, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says.
Two new arts bodies will be created after part of the government's signature arts policy passed the House of Representatives on Thursday.
The new Music Australia body will aim to grow the country's contemporary music sector, while Creative Workplaces will be established to raise the standard of workplace conditions in the sector.
Both bodies will form part of the federal arts investment agency Creative Australia, a re-named Australia Council that has been overhauled as part of a multimillion-dollar arts policy.
Mr Albanese said the new laws, which now head to the Senate, would further enable artists to be better recognised for the work they do.
"Art's work, and this policy recognises this, is just that: it is work," he told parliament on Thursday.
"It is employment as well.
"It's not just a hobby - it isn't just someone trying to make a difference as a hobby while they take a break from another job.
"It is real, meaningful, personal work that happens to make us wealthy in ways that extend far beyond the economic."
The changes form part of the government's $286 million Revive program, which focuses on the arts.
Mr Albanese said the greater focus on the arts sector would allow for greater self-expression across multiple forms.
"Australia ... can aim high, and that's what the arts can do - that's what Australian artists can do, across the full spectrum of the arts," he said.
"It can be the best, and we can strive to really make a difference, and it can be a way in which we reflect ourselves to the world."
Arts Minister Tony Burke said the new policy would enhance culture in Australia.
"I want those stories to keep coming in," he told parliament.
"I want those new artists to keep breaking through.
"I want when people think of Australia to not just think of the natural beauty but to think of the stories that are still being told, the new stories, the new creativity and the stories that have lived on this earth and on this continent ever since the first sunrise."
