Nathalie Heinich’s pragmatic sociology of art
ENNatalie Heinich is a French sociologist and a disciple of Pierre Bourdieu. Since the 1980’s she has produces innovative analyses of art. This article considers the development of her concept of the sociology of art by relying on her major works. The article also briefly discusses Heinich’s peculiar approach to the theoretical and methodological problems of the sociology of art as well as its status and relationship with other social sciences and humanities. Next, the article discusses Heinich’s researches on key institutional shifts in 17th century French culture, thanks to which new art academies triggered the scientific and artistic activities, differentiation, changes in the social status of arts and artists. Much attention is paid to Heinich’s sociology of exclusivity of an artist, the growth of his fame, his works recognition and marketing. Subsequently, focus of discussion is moved to the sociological problems of production, mediation, reception, museums, galleries, critics, curators, and art historians. The paper is concluded by the consideration of Heinich’s comparative studies of American and French approaches to the analysis of contemporary art.
