Art Incorporated: The Story of Contemporary Art

by Julian Stallabrass

"The art world is bound to the economy," writes Julian Stallabrass, "as tightly as Ahab to the white whale." In Art Incorporated , Stallabrass offers a provocative look at contemporary art and the dramatic changes that have taken place in the last twenty years, illuminating the connections
between money, politics, and art.
Stallabrass notes that the spectacular crash of 1989 profoundly changed the character of contemporary art, shattering the art-world's self-importance and producing a reaction against art that engaged with theory and politics, in favor of art that set out to awe, entertain, and be sold. He
describes the growth of biennials and other art events across the globe in the 1990s, the construction of new museums of contemporary art, and the expansion of many museums already in existence. These activities, Stallabrass writes, have become steadily more commercial, as museums establish
alliances with corporations, bring their products closer to commercial culture, and move from modeling themselves on libraries to becoming more like theme parks. In connection with this, he offers an insightful look at installation art, which is often seen as an art that firmly resists buying and
selling, pointing out that installations appeal to museums precisely because a work of art that can only be seen on a particular site ensures that viewers have to go there.
Shedding light on everything from the greatly increased visibility for women artists, to the intense competition between art and television, to the conservative backlash against notorious works, Art Incorporated provides a frank and penetrating view of the contemporary art world.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Art History

240 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 2004

About the author

Julian Stallabrass is an English art historian, photographer and curator. He was educated at Leighton Park School and New College, Oxford University where he studied PPE. A Marxist, he has written extensively on contemporary art (including internet art), photography and the history of twentieth century British art.

Reviews

[Nate · Rating 3 out of 5]

A somewhat cynical and sobering analysis of art's seemingly inextricable relationship with commerce. The author seems to take utmost pleasure in descriptions of favorite work and performance that defy artworld's expectations (isn't that what it's all about anyway?). In the end he touts the cutting edge and democratic approaches to distributing art as our best solution so far for the symptoms of capitalism dominated art.

[Nativeabuse · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping for a book about the ins and outs of the people who run the show and jack up the art prices behind the scenes but what I got instead was a very bland collection of essays which are overly fluffed with art analysis that feels way out of place. There is ZERO discussion of the economics or mechanics of the art world (auction houses, dealers, museums, ect).

There was so much discussion on everything but the economics of art it made me feel as though the author had no clue what he was talking about, and instead tried to avoid this fact by discussing other things.

If you are looking for the inner workings of the art world and an overview on its economics and structures, I would recommend "The $12 Million Stuffed Shark: The Curious Economics of Contemporary Art" by Don Thompson instead. He discusses the economics, names the big players you've never heard of, and doesn't fluff his discussion up with meaningless art jargon and criticism that has nothing to do with the topic.

[K H · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somewhat of a moralizing tongue-wagger. An exploration of money/sponsorship in art with an attempt to posit same as being in opposition to the radical philosophy espoused by most art-makers and art. Stallabrass uses very specific examples, obviously leaving out those artists which would stand in opposition to his points. Still informative.

[Meredith Warner]

Stumbled upon this after hearing Stallbrass in an interview on Against the Grain. Check it out: http://againstthegrain.org/audio8.21....

[Peter Pinelli]

It was fine. He tries to place contemporary art in its larger social context which leads him to associate art trends with neoliberalism. This isn't a particularly helpful claim. Obviously art interacts with the broader social world. By attempting to describe the contemporary art world as a whole, he is forced to reference the largest possible social forces, which give us a weak vision of what's happening. There are some insights in here but this book could be cut in half. One highlight for me was when he wrote about how the international art market leads local art scenes to caricature themselves. Cuban artists have to present THE cuban experience.

Anyway, the big flaw here is that the author knows more about art than geopolitics. It feels a little dated, too. Reading this reminds me of the political climate during the bush years.

[Julia P · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️.5

I definitely enjoyed the parts that clearly discussed the way art and the corporate world, especially marketing, have become interwoven over time. I’ve gotten a spark of my passion for art back from certain aspects of this book. Majority of the book was too verbose and lacked focus, but when there were moments of clarity I really enjoyed that.

[Ismet Emre · Rating 5 out of 5]

sadece sanat tarihi değil sanat ekonomisi için başucu bir kitap. sanatın öyküsü modern sanatın öyküsü ve sanat anonim şirketi. evet sıralama böyle olacak. ne eksik ne fazla çok da kitap okumanıza gerek yok :)

[Bernie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Go good insight into the art world

[CM · Rating 1 out of 5]

No idea why this is on a few reading lists of prestigious History of Art programmes other than to spoon-feed undergraduates about the evil problems of neoliberailsm.

While the author states the central thesis here is how art has become the product ,and the means, of globalization, the book itself seems to be a collection of largely unrelated academic essays/reviews in a rather tiring polemical tone.

Parts of Chapter 1 and 4 can still be relevant to readers of the Post-Truth world (on the apparent freedom of art ,and on the commercial side of art scene) but the rest might offer little else than historical interests to researchers of the 1990s arts.