Summary
Literature Summary block 1 Empirical Methods: Arts Policy Education
- Course
- Institution
Summary of the literature for exam 1 for the course Empirical Methods: Arts Policy Education
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
mariekevoogt
Content preview
Art and State. An Introduction to the Concept of Public Cultural Policy - vanden Hoogen
Introduction
● Modern cultural policy → public policies towards the arts and creative sectors
that have been created by nation states after WW2
● Culture → a specific meaning referring to a particular set of objects and events in
society; heritage artifacts, art works and art events
● Rudi Laermans (2002): Culture is a socially shared reservoir or repertoire of
signs
○ Repertoire of signs refers not only to a formal semiotic game of similarity
and differentiation, but also to assigning meaning as sense that gives
direction and reason for existence to both people and societies
○ “Sign” → meaning we assign to things
Chapter 1. Government and the Cultural Sector
Government, nation and state
● Government exists because they handle the making of collective decisions
○ Also exists because of division of labor
○ ‘Free rider’(Baumol 1952) → members who do not partake in building in
collective projects but are entitled to the benefits of collective community
● Social contract → a voluntary agreement between the people and the rulers.
Government seen as a representation of the rule of the people over themselves
○ Important to recognize that modern nation-states are a relatively late
invention of history → ‘imagined political communities’
The relationship between Governments and Social Agents
● Powerful position of government is restricted by the law → power is legitimated
based on the outcomes of political discussions that are codified in acts (the law)
● Common that governments depend on organizations outside the government to
produce and distribute culture
○ ‘Delivery agents’ (Jankovich/Hansen) → cultural institutions that produce
and distribute artistic and cultural programmes to audiences
,Chapter 2 Defining Cultural Policy
Cultural policy (Per Mangset) → the structured actions of specific public authorities
responsible for the cultural sector
Cultural Policy Instruments
● Policy instruments → actions taken by government to achieve specific goals
● Copyright → provides economic basis for cultural systems
● Permit → governments can allow or disallow certain behavior
○ May penalize those who organize a festival without such permission
● Management by speech → public officials/politicians publicly speak out against
or in favor of certain behavior, hoping that people will pick up on this
● Provide certain facilities that can be used by all cultural agents (e.g. power
sockets on public square)
● Perform collective tasks for the creative and cultural sectors such as collective
marketing
● Can try to influence behavior of audiences through cultural education
Cultural Policy Agents
● Cultural policies are not simply the actions of politicians and civil servants: a
variety of social agents are involved in cultural policies as well → political parties,
social pressure groups, artists, and managers of cultural institutions.
● Cultural policy is a cultural praxis in and of itself: it is a process in which the
people involved collectively develop a shared sense of what cultural policies are
about and how they should be executed. Agents assign a certain meaning to art
and culture in society and to the role of the government regarding this sector
4 basic types of decisions in cultural policies
● Decisions regarding the goals of public cultural policies
○ Goals determine the types of values that are prioritized → intrinsic vs
extrinsic
○ Intrinsic values → close to the arts themselves
○ Extrinsic/Instrumental values → more political, economic or social in
nature
● Decisions regarding the infrastructure for art and culture
○ Consists mainly of the built environment for culture and art (buildings
etc.)
○ Not only material or spatial → through education policies (cultural
education specifically), government's impact on the reception side of art
● Decisions regarding subvention of artists and cultural institutions through
subsidies
, ○ If used as instrument, how to allocate them to delivery agents and under
which conditions, are important issues
○ Arm’s length principle → subsidy allocations need to be made at least at
‘arm’s length’ from political bodies
● Decisions regarding programming
○ Decisions about content of the programme of delivery agents, the art
institutions
○ Arm’s length principle applies here as well
Chapter 3. The Values of (and behind) Cultural Policies: Decisions on Policy Goals
Four Historical Traditions in Cultural Policies
● Culture States (Grand Cultural States) → States claim a hegemonic status of their
culture
○ Culture is linked closely to the concept of citizenship: to be a citizen of the
nation means to be part of its culture
○ State takes up the role of protecting the national cultural patrimony which
defines a sense of self of the citizenry (sense civique)
○ E.G. Italy, France, Austria, Germany, Spain and Portugal
○ Common goal: spreading one’s culture (the language and philosophy) →
accomplished through cultural institutions abroad → cultural diplomacy
○ Highly centralized cultural policies with a central ministry of culture on
national level
○ Role of government in quite unchallenged → policies tend to be informal
in the sense that they may not always be written down explicitly but need
to bei inferred from actions of governments
● Cultural Protectionism → Links cultural identity of the nation to its political
sovereignty
○ May lead to informal policies as the role of the government in supporting
an independent cultural sphere may be seem as self-evident
○ E.G. Canada
■ Opposition to American cultural intrusion has been a basis for
Canadian Cultural Policies since the 1950s. Goal → realize an
independent space for Canadian creativity and artistry
■ Canadian cultural policies also have strong traces of other traditions
● Social-Democratic Culture → cultural policy is part of a much broader array of
governmental efforts to provide a high-level quality of life that is accessible,
sustainable and representative
○ E.G. Scandinavian Countries, also Netherlands and Belgium
, ■ ‘Nordic model’ → sees culture as one of the arrangements of the
welfare state (Duelund 2003)
○ Defines culture as a means for personal development of citizens and
therefore it is the responsibility of the state to provide it to all citizens
○ Tendency towards a large role for local and regional governments, with
coordination of the efforts of local and national authorities, into a
nation-wide cultural policy system by a central cultural ministry
● Laissez-Faire → conceptualisation of culture as an inherently private matter,
which leads to rather restricted role of the government regarding the arts, this in
marked contrast to other traditions
○ Mulcahy only refers to USA, but arguably UK as well
○ Government is a minority stockholder in the business of culture
Shifts in Policy Goals over time (1945-2020)
● Western societies → evident tendency towards democratization: growing
economic prosperity, rising education levels, and the advent of mass
media/digital technologies have led to a wider array of cultural forms being
produced and consumed
○ Democratization of culture→ ideal was to give the whole population access
to the high or elite culture
● 1960/1970 europe → marked by growing conflicts between older and younger
generations and the advent of youth culture made possible by mass media and
the upsurge in post war economy
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller mariekevoogt. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $7.06. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
64438 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now