Constructing the value of art : a sociological perspective on value creation at South African art auctions

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The value of art is a critical concept in theoretical discourse. As a result, the high pricesof artworks on auctions pose questions about the various processes of value constructionand the status of art in these processes.This thesis adopts a sociological approach to the construction of value of art on SouthAfrican auctions. This approach is situated within a socio-historical perspective, whichintroduces the various social structures and conditions of cultural production. The mainpremise of this approach is that a multiplicity of social and cultural influences permeatesthe art market, its processes and structures, and therefore the determination of value. Thisresearch therefore indicates that the value of art on auction is socially constructed. Assuch, the value of an artwork does not reside in itself, but is produced (and constantlyreproduced) through processes that are subject to the codes and conventions of the artworld.Within the context of the art market, artworks function as commodities for economicexchange. Since economic exchange is socially and culturally situated, the distinctiveways in which art auctions in South Africa (as a market intermediary) encompass certainsocial and cultural processes, is also explored. To asses the various factors that influencethe value and exchange of artworks on auction, the study introduces the Components ofValue Model. The Aesthetic and Historical Factors; the Supporting Documentation andMaterial Attributes of an artwork, as well as the Financial and Economic Factorscollectively indicate that values are, first and foremost, social categories. The value of arton auction is therefore a socially constructed value.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University