ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part addresses both concerns a view to identifying specific points of tension within the Australian art field, the agents that are implicated in the contestations around these, and the different futures they portend. It discusses the relations and institutions that shape the production, distribution, and appreciation of art in Australia. The former Minister’s words point to the role the arts are frequently enlisted to play in representing the nation internationally and act as markers of national status and identity. In developing his contrasting account of the historical genesis of the ‘pure aesthetic’, Bourdieu takes his initial bearings from Danto’s conception of the artworld. The collection contributes to debates within cultural policy studies, art history and theory, and the sociology of creative work, in particular with a specific focus on the situation and contributions of Indigenous artists and their work.
