Agency in contemporary European art (2017–2023) in the context of social and cultural trends: Manifestations and effects
https://doi.org/10.22394/2412-9410-2024-10-1-341-362
Abstract
“Agency” or active transformative behavior of individuals in relation to the social world remains one of the central concepts of discussion and research for both the social and the political sciences, and for practice in the field of education, economics, culture, and social policy. The current state of societal processes, de-structuration, makes individual agency especially important for both individual and collective well-being. The contribution of art to understanding and promoting agency remains little known in the scholarly world. The purpose of this research is to study the vision of agency issues by representatives of the contemporary European artistic process in the context of social and cultural trends relevant to Europe and to compare this vision with interpretations in other spheres of public life. The authors try to show how initiatives aimed at developing agency originate in the institutional and noninstitutional art fields in Europe; how they manifest themselves and with what effects. The article puts forward a typology of agency in the contemporary cultural process: 1) social transformation; 2) escapism; 3) crisis adaptation; 4) transformation of actor; quantitative characteristics and concrete examples for each type are provided. Particular attention is paid to the concrete forms of agency that the field of art generates, and how discovered cases reflect broader processes in the social life of Europe.
Keywords
contemporary art,
European art,
agency,
independence,
de-structuration,
escapism,
social transformation,
crisis adaptation,
transformation of actor,
the nature of social actors
Supporting agencies: The study was prepared within the framework of a grant provided by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (Grant agreement No.: 075-15-2022-325).
About the Authors
I. A. Afanaseva
HSE University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Irina A. Afanaseva, MA, Graduate Student, Researcher, Laboratory for Human Capital and Education Research
109028, Moscow, Pokrovsky Boulevard, 11
P. S. Sorokin
HSE University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Pavel S. Sorokin, Cand. Sci. (Sociology) Associate Professor, Leading Research Fellow, Head of the Laboratory for Human Capital and Education Research
109028, Moscow, Pokrovsky Boulevard, 11
A. A. Goloshchapov
Independent Scholar
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Artem A. Goloshchapov, Artist
St. Petersburg
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For citations:
Afanaseva I.A., Sorokin P.S., Goloshchapov A.A. Agency in contemporary European art (2017–2023) in the context of social and cultural trends: Manifestations and effects. Shagi / Steps. 2024;10(1):341-362. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.22394/2412-9410-2024-10-1-341-362
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