Rhetoric, Social Value and the Arts ─ But How Does It Work?

The book reveals how the ‘social value of art’ may have one meaning for a policy maker, another for a museum and still yet another for an artist – and it is therefore in the interaction between these agents that we learn the most about the importance of rhetoric and interpretation. As a trajectory in art history, socially engaged art has a long and established history. However, in recent years—or since ‘the social turn’ that occurred in the 1990s—the rhetoric surrounding the social value of art has been assimilated by cultural policy makers and museums. Interdisciplinary in its approach, and bringing together contributions from artists, curators and academics, the volume explores rhetoric, social value and the arts within different social, political and cultural contexts. 

Charlotte Bonham-Carter is Course Leader of MA Arts and Cultural Enterprise at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London, UK. She has held curatorial positions at Barbican Art Gallery, London; Institute for Contemporary Arts, London and Art on the Underground, the contemporary art programme of the Tube. She maintains a professional practice as a researcher and arts management consultant. 

Nicola Mann is Assistant Professor of Communications and Visual Cultures at Richmond, The American International University in London, UK. She holds an MA in Painting from the Royal College of Art, London, UK and received a PhD in Visual and Cultural Studies from the University of Rochester, New York, USA.