1,720,971 research outputs found
Independent artist-run centres: An empirical analysis of the montreal non-profit visual arts field
No full textCanadian independent artist-run centres provide an interesting case study of the potential role and relevance of non-profit institutions in the contemporary arts field. Predominantly established during the 1970s, they have been founded by artist collectives typically operating within urban contexts, with the aim of providing new opportunities to cope with the physical, economic and cultural constraints that generally impede the professional development of artists. A remarkable urban environment in which it is possible to find, and study, a large number of such organizations is the city of Montreal, in the Quebec Province of Canada, which constitutes an excellent reference to track the onset and the evolution of independent artist-run spaces, and to understand why, how and to what extent they are currently experiencing new pressures and challenges, both on the internal and external sides. This article offers an empirical study of these organizations with reference to their organizational, managerial and strategic vision, and to co-operative interaction and network building practices. It contributes to the field of research on cultural management through its study of the effects of management systems on the strategic action of independent visual arts organizations
Museum environments, visitors’ behaviour, and well-being: beyond the conventional wisdom
No full textWe introduce a taxonomy of museum environments, based upon three dimensions: the auratic/non-auratic character of the environment, visitors’ cultural attendance, and level of cultural attendance of the social context. We consider a case study of a museum environment characterized by the least favourable socio-cognitive conditions, and conduct a study on 102 museum visitors about their cognitive performance in terms of attention and recall, cultural habits, evaluation of museum services, and psychological well-being. In spite of a fair cognitive performance in terms of attention and recall and a general satisfaction with the museum environment features, a weak relationship between performance and cultural habits, and between cultural habits and psychological well-being, is found. We conclude that museum policies for low-attendance museum environments should be carefully reconsidered in order to stimulate visitors to develop more culturally oriented habits, with possible positive impacts also in terms of well-being
The Impact of Culture on the Individual Subjective Well-Being of the Italian Population: An Exploratory Study
Full text linkThe aim of this study is to explore the relationship between cultural access and individual psychological well-being, in order to provide a possible estimation of the impact of cultural participation upon subjective perceptions of well being. Our exploratory research was based on a cross-sectional survey undertook on a medium-large sample (n = 1500) of Italian residents in fall 2008. We refer to the Psychological General Well-Being Index-PGWBI, a tool that has been validated through 30 years of research, as an index of measurement. Moreover, we have administered to the sample an additional questionnaire inquiring about access to 15 distinct culturally related activities. Data are processed by means of a specific methodology based on ANN and Called TWIST. TWIST has been developed by the Semeion Research Center, Rome. Our analysis suggests that culture has a relevant role as a determinant of individual psychological well-being, in that a selected subset of cultural variables turn out to perform among the best predictors of individual PGWB levels. Our results also allow some preliminary considerations about innovative, well-being focused public health policies leveraging upon the human and social developmental role of culture
The Interaction Between Culture, Health and Psychological Well-Being: Data Mining from the Italian Culture and Well-Being Project
Full text linkThe purpose of this study is to understand the impact of health status and cultural participation upon psychological well-being, with special attention to the interaction between patterns of cultural access and other factors known to affect psychological well-being. Data for this report were collected from a sample of 1,500 Italian citizens. A multi-step random sampling method was adopted to draw a large representative sample from the Italian population. Subjects underwent a standard questionnaire for psychological well-being [the Italian short form of the Psychological General Well Being Index (PGWBI)], and a questionnaire related to the frequency of participation to 15 different kinds of cultural activities during the previous year. The results show that, among the various potential factors considered, cultural access unexpectedly rankes as the second most important determinant of psychological well-being, immediately after the absence or presence of diseases, and outperforming factors such as job, age, income, civil status, education, place of living and other important factors. According to a semantic map generated by a powerful data mining algorithm, it turns out that different factors (among which cultural access and health status in particular) may be viewed as concurrent elements of a complex multi-causal scheme that seems to play a primary role in determining psychological distress or well-being. In particular, distress seems to be tightly connected with: living in the Southern part of Italy, average income level, living in semi-urban and urban areas, age group 46-60, presence of more than two concomitant diseases and a low level of cultural access. Well being, on the other hand, is tightly connected with: male gender, high cultural access, and absence of diseases. Some of these associations are confirmed by Principal Component Analysis
Preying on beauty? The complex social dynamics of overtourism
No full textOvertourism is an increasingly relevant problem for tourist destinations, and some cities are starting to take extreme measures to counter it. In this paper, we introduce a simple mathematical model that analyzes the dynamics of the populations of residents and tourists when there is a competition for the access to local services and resources, since the needs of the two populations are partly mutually incompatible. We study under what conditions a stable equilibrium where residents and tourists coexist is reached, and what are the conditions for tourists to take over the city and to expel residents, among others. Even small changes in key parameters may bring about very different outcomes. Policymakers should be aware that a sound knowledge of the structural properties of the dynamics is important when taking measures, whose effect could otherwise be different than expected and even counterproductive
Gentrification as space domestication. The High Line Art case
No full textIn this paper, we critically examine the role of artistic locational choices and practices in the context of gentrification processes in urban renewal contexts. We characterize gentrification as a form of domestication of space, and explore the extent to which artistic choices and practices relate to such process with reference to the deontological dilemma of legitimization within the art system vs. responsible empowerment of vulnerable local constituencies. We illustrate our argument with an analysis of the High Line Art project, and show how this can be considered as a textbook example of art-driven space domestication leading to brutal forms of gentrification. We comment on the threat that this provides to the social credibility of artistic practices as an agency of responsible social change
Culture as an engine of local development processes: System‐wide cultural districts I: Theory
No full textBuilding on the early works of Alfred Marshall, analyses of local economies have emphasized the spatial function of clusters and industrial districts in terms of external economies of localization and agglomeration. Recent literature has emphasized the importance of culture and the complementarities between culture and local tangible and intangible assets. This paper aims to provide an analytical foundation for these processes with a view to developing tools for policy design, analysis and evaluation. By “system-wide cultural districts,” we refer to a new approach to local development where cultural production and participation present significant strategic complementarities with other production chains. In this view, culture drives the accumulation of intangible assets such as human, social, and cultural/symbolic capital, thereby fostering economic and social growth and environmental sustainability
Preying on beauty? The complex social dynamics of overtourism
No full textOvertourism is an increasingly relevant problem for tourist destinations, and some cities are starting to take extreme measures to counter it. In this paper, we introduce a simple mathematical model that analyzes the dynamics of the populations of residents and tourists when there is a competition for the access to local services and resources, since the needs of the two populations are partly mutually incompatible. We study under what conditions a stable equilibrium where residents and tourists coexist is reached, and what are the conditions for tourists to take over the city and to expel residents, among others. Even small changes in key parameters may bring about very different outcomes. Policymakers should be aware that a sound knowledge of the structural properties of the dynamics is important when taking measures, whose effect could otherwise be different than expected and even counterproductive
Lo studio per la distrettualizzazione culturale della Regione Sardegna
No full textMentre in ambito internazionale la cultura assume un ruolo centrale nei processi di sviluppo delle economie, in Italia si continua a fare soprattutto riferimento al tempo libero, al turismo culturale e al suo indotto. Se si guarda alla relazione tra economia, società e territorio quale sistema complesso in grado di generare crescita e sviluppo, diventa invece evidente come, nelle società post-industriali, la competizione avvenga sempre più tra sistemi territoriali in grado di promuovere lo sviluppo organico di cultura immateriale e di cultura materiale. Il libro propone un modello innovativo nel quale la cultura produce sviluppo agendo sui comportamenti dei residenti del sistema locale, stimolandone l'apertura mentale, le capacità di apprendimento e quindi la propensione a produrre e recepire l'innovazione
- …
