Conclusion

Abstract

In the preceding chapters we have looked at what happens in the art worlds of different countries as a consequence of state action and arts policies. Art is socially and economically embedded, and the state plays a significant role in all of the countries we examined. At the same time, many artists have done work that did not respond to economic incentives or comply with political expectations, even when incentives and sanctions were most intense. Our results, then, argue against an idealist conception of art as internally shaped as well as against a view of socioeconomic and political determinism. In this chapter, we build on the case studies to provide an overview of key issues with respect to visual art and the state, and to suggest some broader conclusions about the relationship between the arts and the state.