International Thematic Summer School

Art Markets: An Integrated Perspective

Antwerp-Brussels, 11–15 July 2022

Following in the success of the first
 Art Markets Summer School held in Lyon in June 2019,
this unique research, training and networking experience will take place in 2022

Participants with an academic or professional interest in the mechanics of the art market
will join European and American specialists in art history, economics, sociology, finance,
and digital humanities.

Together, they will present, share, workshop and discuss theoretical approaches, conceptual frameworks and methodological tools in an amical and relaxed atmosphere.

This immersive experience will inspire and shape new interdisciplinary thinkingabout the emergence, history and governance of art markets around the world.

The Summer School is organised by Erasmus University Rotterdam,
the University of Leuven (KU Leuven), the Université Libre de Bruxelles,
Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, and
the Laboratoire de Recherche Historique Rhône-Alpes (LARHRA)

The art market is essentially a multidisciplinary object of study. While it is now a significant sector of the global economy, it has long played a seminal role in the circulation and reception of art, and provided the context within which artists created their work. Researchers from disciplines as diverse as economics, finance, law, history, art history or sociology have contributed to a better understanding of the complexity and specificity of this market arena. However, despite the advances made in each of these fields, research on the art market still too often suffers from a compartmentalization by discipline.

The Art Markets thematic school aims to bring together the international community of researchers working on the art market and to familiarize participants with the scientific approaches of other disciplines. Sharing a common knowledge base and concepts is a necessary condition for developing transdisciplinary collaborations. To this end, this training offers an interdisciplinary theoretical approach and introduces the participants to empirical tools applied in the most up-to-date analytical methods. The interaction between historical and contemporary analyses from the point of view of economics, finance, and sociology is particularly innovative.

In the era of globalization and digital technology, art markets are undergoing profound changes which are leading to a reconfiguration of the modalities of interaction between actors and intermediaries. Issues related to artistic exchanges, the emergence or decline of markets, financial speculation, the segmentation of markets, the concentration of actors and the role of agents in building the economic and social value of art have accelerated the need to use robust analytical techniques to better understand these issues. It is also worthwhile questioning whether these developments are so new. For instance, the role of various institutions such as auction houses or art fairs benefit from being re-examined in the light of their historical roots in order to understand their function in an increasingly global art market system . At the same time, the analysis of contemporary art markets allows us to shed light with the advantage of hindsight on the practices, mechanisms and strategies put in place since the emergence of markets for visual arts from the 16th century onwards. In addition, quantitative analytical methods, data modelling and visualization have paved the way for important methodological and epistemological explorations.

Applicants are required to submit a cover letter with a brief motivation and a CV
by April 1^st at the latest

As the number of participants is limited, a pre-selection will be made by the advisory committee based on the application materials.

Applicants will be notified of their acceptance by the middle of April.

Their registration will be final after payment of the registration fee (no refund will be possible)