Just a little note: I first saw Annie’s work at The Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon and shortly afterwards, I felt brave enough to apply for Art School. It was the nonjudgmental everydayness of her work that inspired me to move forward.
hi Marie, I finally got to read this. I was interested in the idea here of social capital. I am not a sociologist, but I do think about the various capitals a lot (social, economic, cultural etc) as they are relevant when thinking (as a geographer) about core/periphery as you say - and which is about location after all.
Anyway, one thing that your piece made me think about was the difference between collective and individual capital. I seem to remember that Bordeaux's (Forms of Capital 1968) original idea of social capital is more individual than collective, but scholars and community developers have broadened it over the years (and added other capitals). Do you think perhaps that the community of Kinngait gained some social (and other) capitals, but Annie P. as the artist did not? Having social, economic, cultural, and other capitals should be a recipe for a healthy life. There are of course many other parts to her story of course, but it got me thinking about individual vs collective good.
Also a couple other things for you - Canadian Art Magazine has posted a rebirth strategy worth reading- https://canadianart.ca/
The July 31 New Yorker has a fascinating (and repulsive) long story on Larry Gagosian that is up your alley in terms of research about the art market. If its paywalled let me know and I will save you my hard copy.
Good observations and, as always, great questions that make me think.
As to Bourdieu, I would say that he does consider the collective but often uses the individual as a way to explain things. While he writes about how forms of capital effect individuals – for example, how forms of capital contribute to someone appreciating the arts (Distinction) – his concept of the habitus is all about the collective, that is how individuals and communities are shaped by shared language, values, practices, and so on (see his early work on the Berber village). In this regard, Kinngait makes for an interesting case study. New forms of capital were introduced into the community and disrupted the sense of habitus for both the community and individuals like Pootoogook. Later in life, Bourdieu wrote about what he called the habitus clivé, the severed or broken habitus. Bourdieu used his own life – his transition from a small town in France to the heart of Paris’ intellectual world – as an example to explain how a person’s sense of habitus is disrupted when entering a new cultural or collective environment (Sketch for a Self-Analysis). While he did not write about how this shift effects a collective world specifically, I think we can understand that Kinngait, as a community, experienced such a disruption as did Annie Pootoogook. Bourdieu’s point was not to moralize about such a change, but rather to point out how the sense of collectivity (habitus) effects individuals and shifts along with the life experiences of those individuals. For some, these shifts will be more traumatic than for others.
Thanks for the lead on the articles! See my post for August 4.
Just a little note: I first saw Annie’s work at The Mendel Art Gallery in Saskatoon and shortly afterwards, I felt brave enough to apply for Art School. It was the nonjudgmental everydayness of her work that inspired me to move forward.
Love it! Thanks for sharing!
hi Marie, I finally got to read this. I was interested in the idea here of social capital. I am not a sociologist, but I do think about the various capitals a lot (social, economic, cultural etc) as they are relevant when thinking (as a geographer) about core/periphery as you say - and which is about location after all.
Anyway, one thing that your piece made me think about was the difference between collective and individual capital. I seem to remember that Bordeaux's (Forms of Capital 1968) original idea of social capital is more individual than collective, but scholars and community developers have broadened it over the years (and added other capitals). Do you think perhaps that the community of Kinngait gained some social (and other) capitals, but Annie P. as the artist did not? Having social, economic, cultural, and other capitals should be a recipe for a healthy life. There are of course many other parts to her story of course, but it got me thinking about individual vs collective good.
Also a couple other things for you - Canadian Art Magazine has posted a rebirth strategy worth reading- https://canadianart.ca/
The July 31 New Yorker has a fascinating (and repulsive) long story on Larry Gagosian that is up your alley in terms of research about the art market. If its paywalled let me know and I will save you my hard copy.
Good observations and, as always, great questions that make me think.
As to Bourdieu, I would say that he does consider the collective but often uses the individual as a way to explain things. While he writes about how forms of capital effect individuals – for example, how forms of capital contribute to someone appreciating the arts (Distinction) – his concept of the habitus is all about the collective, that is how individuals and communities are shaped by shared language, values, practices, and so on (see his early work on the Berber village). In this regard, Kinngait makes for an interesting case study. New forms of capital were introduced into the community and disrupted the sense of habitus for both the community and individuals like Pootoogook. Later in life, Bourdieu wrote about what he called the habitus clivé, the severed or broken habitus. Bourdieu used his own life – his transition from a small town in France to the heart of Paris’ intellectual world – as an example to explain how a person’s sense of habitus is disrupted when entering a new cultural or collective environment (Sketch for a Self-Analysis). While he did not write about how this shift effects a collective world specifically, I think we can understand that Kinngait, as a community, experienced such a disruption as did Annie Pootoogook. Bourdieu’s point was not to moralize about such a change, but rather to point out how the sense of collectivity (habitus) effects individuals and shifts along with the life experiences of those individuals. For some, these shifts will be more traumatic than for others.
Thanks for the lead on the articles! See my post for August 4.
Thank you for that Bourdieu detail ! It is a more complicated concept than I have realized. I have never been taught about him, just my own reading.