TY - CHAP

T1 - Power and Policies in and by the Arts - Introduction

AU - Gaupp, Lisa

AU - Barber-Kersovan, Alenka

AU - Kirchberg, Volker

PY - 2022/11

Y1 - 2022/11

N2 - The introduction to this book sketches the sociological preoccupation with concepts of domination and power in society. The following chapters discuss (a) the power of social structures on the arts and (b) the power of the arts on social structures. The newer terms for understanding these interactions come from postcolonial and intersectional sociology, as inequalities in the arts arise from multiple and interwoven processes of discrimination. Sociological analyses of the arts seek to uncover these power-laden processes, deconstruct established structures, and recognize artistic practices as practices of power. In doing so, it is important to distinguish between power and domination. Either the arts are dominated by rulers external to the arts and their institutionalized structures, or the arts are able to turn the tables and exercise domination via their legitimacy advantage, for example by shaping taste. The politics of cultural production, on the other hand, must be examined as a relationship between power and the arts. The breakdown of the book is presented with chapters in three sections, “Establishing and De-establishing Power in the Arts,” “Arts and the Power of Social Structures,” and “Arts and the Dominance of Political (Dis)Order.” The reciprocal perspectives of “power in the arts” and “power through the arts” are presented through a two-dimensional model whose first dimension is characterized by “domination versus power” and whose second dimension is characterized by “structural constraint versus volitional agency.” All the articles can be placed in this coordinate system of domination (structure) and power (agency), regardless of whether they stand for negative (hegemonic, totalitarian, unjust) or positive (egalitarian, grassroots, balancing) social purposes.

AB - The introduction to this book sketches the sociological preoccupation with concepts of domination and power in society. The following chapters discuss (a) the power of social structures on the arts and (b) the power of the arts on social structures. The newer terms for understanding these interactions come from postcolonial and intersectional sociology, as inequalities in the arts arise from multiple and interwoven processes of discrimination. Sociological analyses of the arts seek to uncover these power-laden processes, deconstruct established structures, and recognize artistic practices as practices of power. In doing so, it is important to distinguish between power and domination. Either the arts are dominated by rulers external to the arts and their institutionalized structures, or the arts are able to turn the tables and exercise domination via their legitimacy advantage, for example by shaping taste. The politics of cultural production, on the other hand, must be examined as a relationship between power and the arts. The breakdown of the book is presented with chapters in three sections, “Establishing and De-establishing Power in the Arts,” “Arts and the Power of Social Structures,” and “Arts and the Dominance of Political (Dis)Order.” The reciprocal perspectives of “power in the arts” and “power through the arts” are presented through a two-dimensional model whose first dimension is characterized by “domination versus power” and whose second dimension is characterized by “structural constraint versus volitional agency.” All the articles can be placed in this coordinate system of domination (structure) and power (agency), regardless of whether they stand for negative (hegemonic, totalitarian, unjust) or positive (egalitarian, grassroots, balancing) social purposes.

KW - Cultural studies

KW - Arts and political strategies/political structures

KW - Power through the arts

KW - Power over the arts

UR - https://link.springer.com/book/9783658374280

UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/724a4973-ded7-3a57-bdb8-65113d0e17af/

U2 - 10.1007/978-3-658-37429-7_1

DO - 10.1007/978-3-658-37429-7_1

M3 - Other

SN - 978-3-658-37428-0

T3 - Kunst und Gesellschaft

SP - 1

EP - 18

BT - Arts and Power

A2 - Gaupp, Lisa

A2 - Barber-Kersovan, Alenka

A2 - Kirchberg, Volker

PB - Springer VS

CY - Wiesbaden

ER -