Analysing social borders of artistic innovation: a transversal perspective

Today, artistic innovation goes beyond the cultural sphere, and integrates areas of social activity that were not traditionally associated with art. Artistic innovation enhances social and economic impact of urban policies, cultural offers and industrial productions. It is also increasingly used as a political and social counterbalance to reactionary moods in Europe, as well as in countries such as the United Arab Emirates or Singapore. However, despite the increasing importance of artistic innovation for states, territorial powers and industrial systems, its social, economic and cultural impacts remain 'hidden' from traditional measures of innovation. Based on existing literature and empirical observations, this paper identifies social processes that accompany (1) production, (2) social assimilation and (3) territorial anchors of artistic innovation, as well as research questions that these social processes raise in contemporary societies. We suggest that a systemic perspective that adopts a bottom-up and empirical sociological approach can reveal the social indicators of artistic innovation that are still unexplored or underestimated. Our reflection complements the current conceptualisations of artistic innovation offered by other analyses and disciplines, and may be of use to researchers working in the related fields