Notre thèse se concentre sur la question des mécanismes de restructuration du système du monde de l’art à Bruxelles à la fin du XIXe siècle. Nous cherchons à démontrer comment une nouvelle scène artistique construite autour du cercle des XX à Bruxelles, dont l’épanouissement sera pris en charge par l’animateur d’art Octave Maus, produit un art qui est influencé par les enjeux sociaux et politiques portés par un milieu défini de manière sociale, culturelle et générationnelle.<p>Nous avons ainsi voulu replacer le groupe des XX dans son contexte économique, politique et social. La diversification des approches et des sources était donc un aspect essentiel de nos recherches. Plusieurs voies d’approche ont été empruntées, telles que l’histoire culturelle, la sociologie de l’art, l’histoire du marché de l’art, l’analyse politique ainsi que l’étude de la visual culture. <p>Dans un premier temps, nous analysons l’émergence de la nouvelle scène artistique construite autour du groupe des XX. Nous débutons par une analyse plus monographique du parcours de Maus afin de définir les qualités essentielles de l’animateur d’art qu’il incarne, ainsi que son rôle dans la reconfiguration du milieu culturel. Ensuite, notre étude se concentre sur la mobilisation d’un public autour des salons et la mise en place d’un nouveau marché de l’art aux XX. <p>Dans un second temps, notre étude se penche sur les œuvres créées par les XX et sélectionnées par le public d’amateurs fidèles au groupe. Nous éclairons cette production artistique en y décelant les influences des questionnements et des prises de position sociales et politiques du public des XX, défini précédemment. L’analyse iconographique et stylistique des œuvres s’accompagne d’un travail sur ce milieu culturel, et particulièrement sur ses positions face aux débats sociaux de l’époque. Cette étude aboutit, d’une part, à une description approfondie du public des XX, et, d’autre part, à une meilleure compréhension de l’originalité de la production esthétique des artistes du groupe. /<p><p>This PhD thesis concentrates on the mechanisms by which the artistic world in Brussels was reorganized at the end of the 19th century. The research focuses on the places, institutions, publics, art markets and aesthetic developments that characterized the new artistic scene constructed around the “Salon des XX”. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that this artistic circle, led by Octave Maus, produced an art influenced by social, political and economic issues. Another aim has been to analyze the public that defended the artists by studying its social, cultural and generational nature.<p>This thesis, which is divided into two parts, for the first time explores the circle of the XX in its economic, political and social environment. The diversification of sources and scientific methods was therefore an essential aspect of the research. Different methods were applied such as, for example, the cultural history, the sociology of art, the history of the art market, political sciences and the visual culture.<p>The first part of this study is about the emergence of a new artistic scene founded around the “Groupe des XX”. The first objective was to investigate the personal and professional path followed by Octave Maus, the manager of the XX, who played a major role in the evolution of the cultural world. Subsequently the research focuses on the mobilization of a particular public and the creation of a new art market around the XX’s exhibitions.<p>The second part of this thesis considers the works of art created by the artists of the “Groupe des XX” and chosen by the public for private collections. New light is shed on this artistic production by the study of the social and political position of the XX’s public, considered as a social group. Hence the iconographic and stylistic analysis of the works goes together with a study of the XX’s milieu, and in particular with its political action. The present thesis, and the method that aims to study the works in parallel with the public’s social nature, lead to a better understanding of the cultural milieu and, at the same time, of the originality of the XX’s artistic creation. <p><p> / Doctorat en Histoire, art et archéologie / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

I sought to find out whether this was a tension between artistic and commercial in the career of visual artists, and if so, how this tension was managed. In attempting to uncover information which could address the research question I undertook in-depth career history interviews with artists which covered their time at art school through to their current practice. The career history method was deliberately chosen in order to address the research question at a tangent as both the literature, and my own personal experience of the field of contemporary visual art, had suggested that the topic of artistic and commercial was a sensitive one. By framing the interviews around the experiences the artists had through the time period of their training and career, I was able to approach the research questions indirectly from the perspective of the artists. Through analysis of the interview transcripts the framework of Bourdieu's capitals arose as one that would capably explain the activities which the artists were undertaken and I used this as a framing device for the empirical chapters in the thesis. In exploring ideas of cultural, social and economic capitals in relation to how artists describe the activities they undertake during their career it became apparent that the broad structures of cultural capital needed further refinement in their application to the careers of visual artists. In the thesis I chose to elaborate further on the concept of artistic capital which has, until now, been unexplored by scholars. I have developed an understanding of artistic capital as a subcategory of cultural capital with particular application to the field of contemporary visual art – with the potential for wider application beyond the thesis. The three capitals of artistic, social and economic proved a capable structure for understanding whether there was a tension between artistic and commercial and how artists managed this. Through this research I have found that artists come to believe, during their early career and training through art school, that there is a tension between artistic and commercial as this is perpetuated by institutions and art world participants through their exclusion or dismissal of commercial aspects of the visual art field. Through their careers they come to realise that this tension is less prevalent than they thought and that they are able to manage these two aspects of artistic and commercial more effectively. However, artists continue to be faced with instances where this tension is imposed upon them by other art world players who perpetuate the belief that there is an inherent, unresolvable tension between artistic and commercial. These individuals attempt to shield artists from this perceived tension later in their careers when artists are already adept at managing the competing priorities of artistic and commercial without the two creating tension.