Art, authenticity, and the marketplace: Institutional transformations and their impact on art since 1960.
Item
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Title
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Art, authenticity, and the marketplace: Institutional transformations and their impact on art since 1960.
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Identifier
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AAI9820517
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identifier
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9820517
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Creator
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Buskirk, Martha.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Carol Armstrong
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Date
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1998
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Art History | History, United States | Law
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Abstract
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Many works of art produced since 1960 call into question traditional assumptions concerning originality and the nature of the work of art through the use of technical reproduction, the deployment of industrial materials and methods, the assembly of prefabricated or readymade elements, or the incorporation of the surrounding context. In the absence of the artist's hand, both limits on production and evidence of authenticity may be present not in the material object itself but in its connection to the institutional structures of the art world. Under Postmodernism the conventions associated with a particular medium are often separated from the medium itself, and distinctions between representation and abstraction become blurred as both are subjected to similar types of mediation. The pervasive incorporation of reproduction in works of art can also lead to copyright conflicts, particularly when artists take up mass-media images.;To understand the context for contemporary art, it is important to consider the historical development of the museum and the reciprocal relationship between art and various forms of mechanical reproduction. One key moment in the history of the museum was the reorganization of the collection according to the category of the artist rather than subject matter or genre. The connection to the name of the artist has remained crucial even for works where traditional conceptions of stylistic or formal unity no longer pertain, and it allows a range of nontraditional images and forms to be designated as art.;The dissertation is divided into three sections that consider interlocking issues: the rise of the art museum as a specific type and the role of the museum in defining originality and artistic authorship; copyright and the importance of the legal definition of authorship, both as a model that has parallels to artistic authorship and as an increasingly important force in a society permeated by images; and the impact of transformations in mechanical reproduction on shifting definitions of authenticity as artists have incorporated various types of reproduction and fabrication.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
