Artists, Patrons, and the Public: Why Culture Changes

In this book, Barry and Gail Lord focus their two lifetimes of international experience working in the cultural sector on the challenging questions of why and how culture changes. They situate their discourse on aesthetic culture within a broad and inclusive definition of culture in relation to material, physical and socio-political cultures. Here at last is a dynamic understanding of the work of art, in all aspects, media and disciplines, illuminating both the primary role of the artist in initiating cultural change, and the crucial role of patronage in sustaining the artist. Drawing on their worldwide experience, they demonstrate the interdependence of artistic production, patronage, and audience and the remarkable transformations that we have witnessed through the millennia of the history of the arts, from our ancient past to the knowledge economy of the twenty-first century. Questions of cultural identity, migration, and our growing environmental consciousness are just a few examples of the contexts in which the Lords show how and why our cultural values are formed and transformed. This book is intended for artists, students, and teachers of art history, museum studies, cultural studies, and philosophy, and for cultural workers in all media and disciplines. It is above all intended for those who think of themselves first as audience because we are all participants in cultural change.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 Chapter 1. What is Culture? Chapter 3 Chapter 2. Four Kinds of Culture Chapter 4 Chapter 3. The Meanings of Art Chapter 5 Chapter 4. All Art is Social Chapter 6 Chapter 5. Patronage in Action Chapter 7 Chapter 6. Primacy of the Artist Chapter 8 Chapter 7. Seven Principles of Cultural Change Chapter 9 Chapter 8. Cultural Change and the Environment Chapter 10 Chapter 9. Contemporary Cultural Change Chapter 11 For Further Reading

About the Author :
Barry Lord and Gail Dexter Lord are the founders and co-presidents of Lord Cultural Resources.

Review :
This is a valuable project and the world will want to know what Gail and Barry think about the matters they touch; I can't think of authors whose practical wisdom is better suited to the task. Given the current devastation resulting from British Petroleum's catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the book is quite timely in its elucidation of the world's fundamental shift to a post-coal oil-based/credit-based/knowledge economy, and our resulting awareness of and concern for ongoing environmental degradation. At the heart of the book, the Lords provide a fascinating history of art patronage from the earliest tools to abstract art today….Perhaps the most valuable chapter to museum professionals is one near the end of the book that explores contemporary cultural change. The Lords apply their previous premises on art, culture and patronage to today's trends, and specifically to museums and municipalities. They examine how museums are experimenting with new ways to present their collections and, in turn, showcase culture and patronage and create more engaged citizens. All involved in the visual and performing arts will be intrigued by the seven principles….They provide an interesting framework for understand cultural and artistic evolution. I find this an important book because of the clarity in which the Lords set out the terms. I don't think such a thing has been done before. It's going to be an enormous aid to anyone working in the culture sector—practitioners, teachers, historians, and theorists, too. The book acts both as a retrospective and synthesis of over 30 years of thinking about and working with museums. As leaders of one of the world's largest firms specializing in the planning and management of cultural institutions, Lord & Lord propose a framework for understanding the dynamic of cultural change…. The book offers a valuable perspective from practitioners whose remarkable professional trajectory alone demonstrates their grasp of the phenomena. The book provides a framework to situate the intervention of the museum as a civil society institution that simultaneously respond and contribute to cultural change. It should be considered a reference book for both museum practitioners and students.