Course detail

Art, Commerce, Power

FaVU-ACP-LAcad. year: 2022/2023

The course deals with the relationship of art commerce and its relationship with power structures. How is value generated? The course will start with an excursion to 17th century Netherlands and the phenomenon of tulipmania and the consequent burst of the speculative bubble. What is the relationship between tulip bulbs and Damian Hirst's artefacts?
We will also look into trade with luxurious goods and art trade in 18th century France and England; we will compare these trade structures to those of the 19th century when art academies and a greater degree of institutionalization of art had a significant impact on artists' position at the market.
What is the relationship between the needs of the state, companies, or wealthy individuals to represent themselves through art and how does this need form the content of art?
We are also going to look at business manual for art lovers which should help them to get themselves oriented at the art market and contrast this text with the one which criticises the establishment of values.

We will look into the esthablishment of the myth of the artist, the expectations of the profession and of the professional conduct, and we will try to asnwer the question "why are artists poor," together with the texts by Hans Abbing.

We will also explore the norms and rules of the conduct of private galleries as they were researched Olav Velthuis from a sociological perspective.

Towards the end of the course, we are going to look at brand identity in commercial sphere, see how this can be related to the art world(s) and finish with general texts dealing with the critique of neoliberalism. We will see how art collecting can often be a means of financial investment and speculation.

Language of instruction

English

Number of ECTS credits

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Guarantor

Mgr. et MgA. Barbora Lungová

Department

Department of Art History and Theory (KTDU)

Offered to foreign students

The home faculty only

Learning outcomes of the course unit

Students will become aware of the dynamics of both economic and symbolic value creation of artworks and artists through reading texts which analyze narratives and artistic institutions maily through the lens of sociology and art criticism.

Prerequisites

Students must be able to use English on academic level.

Co-requisites

Not applicable.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Discussion and written reflections of assigned texts represent the core content of classes. Students' output is crucial for the classes.

Assesment methods and criteria linked to learning outcomes

Students must write all 12 - 13 tests. Exam.

Course curriculum

The course syllabus is identical with the bibliography list. We will deal with one text per seminar.

Work placements

Not applicable.

Aims

Students should be more aware of deeper interconnectedness between the creation of value, social demand, social status, symbolic capital, and the distribution of power in society.

Specification of controlled education, way of implementation and compensation for absences

Attendance - max. two absences per semester.

Recommended optional programme components

Not applicable.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

Goldgar, Anne. Tulipmania. (EN)
Abbing, Hans. Why Are Artists Poor. (EN)
Perry and Cunningham. Academies, Museums, and Canons of Art (EN)
Solkin, David. Painting for Money. The Visual Arts and the Public Sphere in 18th Century England. (EN)
Graw, Isabelle. High Price: Art Between the Market and Celebrity Culture. (EN)
Velthuis, Olav. Talking Prices: Symbolic Meaning of Prices on the Market for Contemporary Art. (EN)
Adam, Georgina. The Dark Side of the Boom. The Excesses of the Art Market in the 21st Century. (EN)

Type of course unit

Lecture

13 hours, optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

Mgr. et MgA. Barbora Lungová

Seminar

13 hours, optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

Mgr. et MgA. Barbora Lungová

VUT

Faculties

University Institutes

Parts

Art, Commerce, Power

Type of course unit