Abstract

RAMIREZ JARAMILLO, John. Paul Valéry: Paradoxes and Challenges of Art in the Modern Economic System. arete [online]. 2017, vol.29, n.2, pp.385-406. ISSN 1016-913X.  http://dx.doi.org/10.18800/arete.201702.007.

The aim of this article is to demonstrate that Paul Valéry’s thought develops a critical analysis of the conditions in which art establishes a relationship with the modern economic system. In order to validate this hypothesis, the notion of "economic machine", which describes the economic theory and defines characteristics of useful and useless objects that constitute the market, is presented. Afterwards, the article details the historical process of commercialization of art in modern times and clarifies the reasons why art producers and consumers appropriate the work of art in different forms. It is shown that, due to the supremacy of the symbolic nature in the work of art, the creation and actualization of its quantitative and qualitative value conveys a great deal of indeterminability. The article also demonstrates the existence of an aesthetic theory with which the French author proposes the appreciation of value of the work of art. Finally, the role that critique should assume regarding artistic production dedicated to social consumption is described.

Keywords : economic machine; artistic work; producer; consumer; artistic value.

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