Opening Thursday June 26th, 4 p.m.
If art is ultimately a good, it is surely one of the most singular to circulate in the market. As we know, an artwork’s price does not necessarily reflect its true value. Two intertwined realities coexist within artistic objects: the priceless worth conferred by symbolic value, and the price determined by market forces. In fact, in allusion to this curious paradox, the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu described the art market as the “commerce of things that aren’t commercial.” Indeed, symbolic value and market value coexist in works of art as two interdependent variables in permanent tension. Furthermore, certain qualities inherent in artworks—intellectual surplus value, epistemological potential, affective value, and disinterested pleasure—cannot be easily translated into economic categories. Through works by Marta Minujín, Dagoberto Rodríguez, Alicia Herrero, Esteban Álvarez, and Laura Ojeda Bär, this exhibition invites us to explore dimensions of this paradox, viewing art both as part of the market and, at the same time, as its potential challenger. Artistic practice thus becomes counter-practice—an analytical, interventionist process that seeks to transform the field of art.
Imagen: Alicia Herrero (ARG) ACTION-INSTRUMENTS BOX, 2012
