Art for Whose Sake? Audience Relational Orientation Work in the “Porcelain Capital” of China

Abstract: This study examines whether and how occupational members adjust their relational orientation toward their audience in the face of a disruptive event. Drawing on interviews, observation, and photographs from an ethnographic study, I investigate how 67 porcelain artists in Jing De Zhen responded to disintermediation in the art market, which resulted in artists interacting directly with their customers. Analyzing artists’ responses to the market shift reveals that artists who constructed a new audience relational orientation experienced a misalignment between their occupational prototypes (beliefs around what constituted an exemplary occupational member) and their own personal considerations (e.g., aspirations, financial considerations, etc.), which led them to question their previous way of working and gave rise to innovations in their work.

Keywords: Occupational conflicts, innovation, ethnography

Topic: ORG   |   Format: Full Paper