Thinking about art objects and their socio-economic significance in contemporary capitalism

Pascale Bédard, Professor in Sociology of Arts and Culture (Université Laval)

On 16 October 2025, an ENCATC Art Talk held at the Université libre de Bruxelles reflected on art objects and their socio-economic significance in contemporary capitalism. Pascale Bédard examined artworks both as objective realities produced through creative practice and as commodities or "counter-commodities", showing how art's complex relationship with commercial markets shapes the social integration of artists, who often need to earn a living while pursuing work driven by other goals. In contemporary capitalism, where authenticity and creativity sell well, artistic work challenges the idea of vocation and its social role. To continue studying the economic embeddedness of the art object, she proposed using sociological categories such as commodity, productive work and free work.