Lessons from the past

1
Lessons from the past

• Towards an analytical framework for the
  performance of creative industries through
  insights from the analysis of the Flemish
  designer fashion.

An Moons - CEMESO
2
Introduction

• In recent years a lot of attention to creative
  industries
• Despite interesting issues, some aspects need to
  be further clarified
• problematic definition of creative industries
• historical research on CI underrepresented
• an analytical framework for the analysis of the
  performance of a certain CI within a specific
  nation or region largely missing
• Focus paper a prototype of an analytical
  instrument for the analysis of the economic and
  cultural performance of a CI
• Paper consists of two parts
• (1) definition and classification
• (2) the analytical framework

3
CI an attempt to definition

• Clear definition of CI desirable but also wishful
  thinking because of
• Vague boundaries
• Different cultural contexts
• Refer to all kind of things
• Industries in which (semi-)industrial artistic
  and symbolic content or texts are produced
• Artistic driven by aesthetic standards and
  canons of taste
• Symbolic symbolic meaning
• Focus on artistic and symbolic content implies a
  symbolic creator (Hesmondhalgh, 2002)
• But the final product joint activity of a
  number of people within a sort of art world
  (Becker, 1982)

4
CI an attempt to classification
Hybrids
! Not the only possible system and CI far from
homogeneous
5
Characteristics of creative goods

• Six related characteristics of creative goods
• Symbolic meaning and opportunity for symbolic
  consumption
• Uncertainty and unpredictability of the demand
• Necessity of human knowledge, skills and crafts
• Permanent need for an integrated process of
  innovation
• Dependence of the symbolic creators on strategic
  power relations within networks
• Need for cultural entrepreneurship

6
The rise of the culturalized industries

• Process of fashionization and culturalization of
  traditional goods ? boundaries between
  traditional goods and CI more complex and vague
• Certain traditional goods more and more ruled by
  demands concerning creativity, design, human
  skills, knowledge, etc.
• culturalized industries important economic
  and utilitarian value and cultural value
• Example mass confection

7
The analytical instrument introduction

• Instrument product of interaction between
  social debates, theoretical insights and
  empirical analysis of the roots (historical basic
  conditions and constituting processes) of the
  performance of the Flemish designer fashion
  industry
• How and why the designer fashion industry
  became competitive in the eighties in Flanders?

8
The analytical instrument theoretical foundations

• 4 complementary schools of thought
• Political economy power relations social
  totality historical transformations and
  historical basic conditions
• Management research competitive advantage of
  nations (Porter, 1990) innovation with a view
  to productivity and the diamond
• Cultural Studies creative goods as signifying
  practices, as texts
• Network theories (ANT) interaction between
  actors within networks, power as network effect,
  processes of translation and alignment,
  translation centres or obligatory passages as
  mechanics of power indispensable actors or
  hubs communities and networks of practice

9
The analytical instrument schematically
Culture ? Economy
Government ? Market
Innovation ? Consolidation
Localisation ? globalisation
10
The analytical instrument the constituting
determinants
11
The analytical instrument some remarks

• Analytical instrument a system or a creating
  network
• Constituted by the interdependent determinants
  each determinant crucial but some determinants
  more significant and precarious
• Criss-crossed by actor-networks
• Instrument itself actor-network (a creating
  network)
• From the meta to micro level, the extent of
  (re)action and innovation of cultural
  entrepreneurs increases
• ? improvements regarding determinants dependent
  on willingness of the cultural entrepreneurs not
  be taken for granted
• ? significance of cultural entrepreneurship
• The interplay of the determinants can be
  influenced by the government
• Some determinants special attention

12
Conclusion

• First attempt at developing an analytical
  instrument for the analysis of the cultural and
  economic performance of a specific creative
  industry
• Instrument not a strait-jacket but a dynamic
  contingent interplay of determinants
• Complexity of such a tool and its constituting
  elements
• Contingency To talk of contingency is not to
  give up the search for pattern but to assume that
  patterns only go so far. (Law, 1994 97)
• Relational effects ? constituting a story ?
  synchronic snapshots
• Evaluation instrument ? key to success
  unpredictable transitions, several determinants
  difficult to manage, transformation of the
  system, etc.
• Further empirical evaluation with a view to
  further refinement in our empirical PhD-study and
  in research to other CI