Democratizing Culture or Cultural Democracy?

Why the Arts Don't Do Anything: Toward a New Vision for Cultural Production in Education

“…The project of democratizing culture must be about opening up spaces of cultural production for democratic engagement as a process in which the very boundaries and limitations of every context are open to debate. Unlike the aims of cultural democracy, which tend to focus on issues of access to existing artistic practices and institutions, a cultural production approach is about the "democratization of culture" and about challenging existing institutional arrangements (Evrard, 1997;Gattinger, 2011). Such arrangements include schools, museums, orchestras, and other cultural institutions that delimit who can and cannot participate and rubén a. gaztambide-fernández whose contributions count and whose do not, usually along social categories of race, class, gender, sexuality, and ability.…”

Art and urban renewal: Public and private developments in Las Vegas

“…The role of art and culture in narratives of place development and the nurturing of creative communities as a means to build vibrant and dynamic urban sites has become a dominant strand in discourses around city branding (Evans, 2001;Landry, 2000). Creativity has been positioned at the centre of economic life (Howkins, 2001) with claims by Florida (2002) that it is the "decisive force of competitive advantage". As such, the arts have been given a significant role in strategies of urban regeneration, attracting tourism and business and enhancing the aesthetic quality of the urban environment (Miles, 2005, p. 889).…”

“…The debate about "democratizing culture or cultural democracy" (Evrard, 1997) can be traced back to the Victorian period with John Ruskin's idea of providing the best art to all as a civilising influence versus William Morris' advocacy of improvement through the practice of the crafts. The former advocated the democratisation of art by promoting the appreciation of great art and the latter held a view of art that was more flexibly defined where everyone discovers their own creativity (Borzello, 1987, p. 28, 105).…”

Equal Access or Empowerment?

“…However, the focus of understanding in regard to what kind of positive aspects arts and culture can add to societies has evolved over time. Researchers describe this evolution in terms of paradigmatic changes in cultural policy (Bonet and Négrier, 2018;Duelund, 2008;Evrard, 1997;Skot-Hansen, 2005). In this study, the paradigms of cultural democratisation and cultural democracy are of importance.…”