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Model for the Analysis and Interpretation of Cultural Dynamics of the Art Field Based on Art Criticism – A Case Study from Croatia

The problem of missing data or the bias present in research that is based on the use of already structured data sources is one of the issues always highlighted when one delves into historical network research in general, and the analysis of the dynamics of the art field in particular. These biases are not only present when one considers the relationship between different geographical art “centers” and “peripheries, ” but also when one focuses on the development of the art field in a narrower local or regional context. This contribution proposes a model for the analysis and interpretation of dynamics of the art field that is based on art criticism: by using art magazines of different esthetic and ideological profiles as data sources, network analysis of art criticism is used to identify central actors and changing trends of a specific art scene, as well as different and sometimes competing social circles, the simultaneous presence of which gives a more nuanced understanding of the complexities of the art field, and of the relations between the artistic and socio-political paradigm. The basic hypothesis of this research is that the visual arts scene develops in interaction of different types of individual and collective actors, which forms the dynamic network structure of the art field. Actors enter into existing network and cultural structures, which function according to already established “conventions, ” which they can choose to follow or thoroughly change with the help of resources and “cultural idioms” at their disposal in a particular time and place. Initially developed on the case study of the art field in Croatia during the nineties and the early aughts, a wider application of the model would serve its further development, while it would simultaneously allow for more structured research of connections and collaborations of different national art scenes in a globalized art world.

1990s, art criticism, digital art history, digital humanities, network analysis, visual arts

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