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Abstract:
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In using the Bakhtinian dialogic approach, this paper examines the microscopic
interaction of three artists, two art buyers and one gallery sales executive in
Singapore. The importance of galleries, as go-betweens for artists and art buyers
is acknowledged in art world research. This paper however looks at the
interactional levels and identifies social mechanisms that shape art buying and
selling behavior. Despite the possibility of skipping galleries in acquiring art,
the commercial art gallery absorbs the “emotional costs” of buying and selling
art. Commercial art galleries create and maintain glamourized image of the
artist; this image can be destroyed when art buyers go back stage and visit the
artist. The clashes of expectations and social contexts when artists and art
buyers transact can be avoided when the transaction is done through the
commercial gallery. |
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