Art collecting as consumption and entrepreneurial marketing as strategy

Abstract

PurposeThe authors adopt a biographical methodology to investigate how a privately funded art museum has risen to become a key visitor destination on the island of Tasmania, Australia.Design/methodology/approachThe authors utilise both entrepreneurship and consumption as collecting lenses to gain insight into the success of a new arts venture. In addition to biographical methodology the authors utilise in-depth interviews and participant observation.FindingsThe analysis shows what can be achieved when alternative paths to creativity and innovation are pursued. The creativity inherent in such actions does not necessarily have to be substantial. Sometimes incremental approaches to achieving something different from the norm are sufficient.Research limitations/implicationsImplications include the continued merits of adopting a biographical approach to uncovering longitudinal insight into interlinking entrepreneurship and consumption practices. This approach enables key impacting events over time to be identified as they impact on the direction taken by the art entrepreneur.Practical implicationsThere is growing evidence that administrative approaches to arts governance are limiting in their effectiveness. This paper addresses the call to be more entrepreneurial in arts governance practices.Originality/valueThere are only a limited number of papers on entrepreneurship and consumption in the arts and this research adds to knowledge in the area.

Arts marketing during COVID-19: a critical review and theoretical integration

“…This involves “the carrying out of a novel combination that results in something new and appreciated in the cultural sphere” (Swedberg, 2006, p. 26). Klamer (2011, p. 141) deems a cultural entrepreneur to be an individual who is entrepreneurial in the realisation of cultural values (Rentschler et al ., 2018), while cultural entrepreneurship is seen to be the use of risk-taking innovation, pro-activeness organisationally (Fillis and Lehman, 2021; Rentschler et al , 2018). The role of external network ties is central to effective cultural entrepreneurial success (Konrad, 2013).…”

“…However, the COVID-19 environment and its pathways to recovery now also add additional dimensions as arts and cultural institutions respond to the crisis. The health and wellbeing dimensions of cultural value should be recognised and leveraged here in assisting the recovery of the CCIs (Fillis et al, 2015;Lee et al, 2018;Lehman et al, 2021), including digital fatigue and digital disengagement.…”

Assessing the notion of art as a product: entrepreneurial marketing insights from the visual arts

“…The motivation to create is an innate need which often exceeds the need to know what will actually be created. This also aligns to broader entrepreneurial marketing practice in the arts where creativity is paramount but no specific endpoint has been identified (Fillis and Lehman, 2021). Interviewee 14 illustrates this motivation:…”

“…Other entrepreneurial marketing related research in the arts includes Lee, Fraser and Fillis (2022) who assess how price-setting by emerging artists can be impacted by their entrepreneurial mindset but can also be shaped by inappropriate or unrealistic art product price setting due to the lack of engagement with the art market. Further evidence of arts-based entrepreneurial marketing practice is provided by Fillis and Lehman (2021) who investigate how the privately funded Museum of Old and New Art has become the second most visited destination on the island of Tasmania, Australia. Lehman, Wickham and Fillis (2018) analyse the supply-side of the arts market, focusing on how the actors interact as a network in the art production process.…”