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The tutorial provides an overview of economic, political, and social structures of the (Austrian) Kulturbetrieb (public cultural activities and institutions). Through meetings and conversations with freelance creative workers as well as representatives of cultural institutions, students will gain insight into different fields of practice, production conditions, and fundraising strategies of cultural activities. These insights will be discussed in the context of broader social, cultural, and political developments. This way, students will be enabled to reflect critically upon activities of cultural creation as social practices.

During the first part of the tutorial, we will gain an overview of the principal areas and objects of Cultural Institution Studies by reading and discussing theoretical texts that analyze the means of production, the ways of distribution, and reception of cultural goods and symbols. Moreover, we will analyse the structures of different fields of work that produce art and culture and the general cultural and educational framework of the Kulturbetrieb. The second, more practical part of the tutorial will focus on the everyday reality and concrete practices of cultural work: We will visit cultural institutions, interview, and listen to talks given by Innsbruck-based independent creative workers. The goal of Cultural Institution Studies is not only to practically apply the research, but also to reflect upon cultural activities as practices to shape social and aesthetical processes. Students will therefore connect the observations and insights they gained to general cultural and socio-political issues and discuss the social status of creativity in the 21th century.

Cultural Institution Studies include various methods, including the empircial and theoretical methods of social and cultural studies as well as economic analysis. Students will learn about these methods by retracing them in their own reading and discussing the results with the group.

All students need to prepare short oral presentations during the semester, and prepare interviews and talks with creative workers. At the end of the semester, students will write a short paper (4 - 5 pages), summarizing some of the results of the tutorial. Moreover, students are expected to actively engage in the group discussions.

Bekmeier-Feuerhahn u.a. (Hg). Kulturmanagement und Kulturpolitik: Jahrbuch für Kulturmanagement 2011. Bielefeld: transcript, 2011.

Klein, Armin. Kulturpolitik: Eine Einführung. 3., aktualisierte Aufl., Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, 2009.

Konrad, Heimo. Kulturpolitik: Eine interdisziplinäre Einführung. Wien: Facultas Universitätsverlag, 2010.

Menke, Christoph, und Juliane Rebentisch, Hrsg. Kreation und Depression: Freiheit im gegenwärtigen Kapitalismus. Berlin: Kulturverlag Kadmos, 2012.

Reckwitz, Andreas. Die Erfindung der Kreativität: Zum Prozess gesellschaftlicher Ästhetisierung. Auflage: Originalausgabe. Berlin: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2012.

Tschmuck, Peter / Zembylas, Tasos. Der Staat als kulturfördernde Instanz. Innsbruck: Studien Verlag, 2005.

Zembylas, Tasos. Kulturbetriebslehre. Grundlagen einer Inter-Disziplin. Wiesbaden: Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, 2004.