Cultural Entrepreneurship and
Innova on
Week 1
Bradshaw & Holbrook (2007)- Remembering Chet: theorizing the
mythology of the self-destruc ve bohemian ar st as self-producer and
self-consumer in the market for roman cism
Paper in a nutshell
Case study about Chet Baker: his life was one of self destruc on. The authors argue that this self
destruc on is a pa ern rising from roman c self tragic behaviours that legi mise their ar s c
value in their self destruc ve pa erns.
Jazz as a highbrow art that is meant for and consumed by the community of musicians themselves-
but they are nancially successful bc of the public; dichotomy of commerciality vs ar s c integrity.
Commercial success is seen as the opposite of ar s c excellence. Self destruc ve behaviours
enable merging the two, as the ar st is not playing to make money (commercial success) but to
fund the behaviour. Self destruc on shows that this commerciality is destroying the ar st from the
inside hence reinforcing its perceived ar s c integrity.
Framework it’s working in/theore cal BG:
- Aesthe c approach to marke ng theory: how the pictorial and aesthe c presenta on of Chet
in uenced its music. Baker’s career morphed into a visual and musical display of self-destruc on
which proved to have strong market poten al. His self destruc on was perceived as “roman c” in
the Wertherian sense of being unable to live live without being consumed by it.
Roman c understanding of the ar st as a tragic gure who uncompromisingly rejected bourgeois
sensibili es and deliberately avoids materialis c values. This Bohemian trajectory was taken by
many ar sts and was roman cised.
- Historical framework, marketplace mythology
Findings
The market nds the myth of ar s c self destruc on appealing bc “We are inspired by musicians
who are seen to resist the market in favour of bohemian ideals – even at the expense of ar s c
self-destruc on – because therein lies the possibility, for us Roman c consumers, of complete
market emancipa on and absten on from bourgeois conformity.”
Contribu on
This paper contributes to the aesthe c approach to marke ng (which usually focuses on exploring
the symbolic and hedonic components of aesthe c consump on, aesthe c consump on pa erns,
and how cultural products provide insights into consumer culture) by showing the importance of
how a marke sed aesthe c domain can be problema c. Self destruc on and human costs are the
results.
1
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Innova on
Week 1
Bradshaw & Holbrook (2007)- Remembering Chet: theorizing the
mythology of the self-destruc ve bohemian ar st as self-producer and
self-consumer in the market for roman cism
Paper in a nutshell
Case study about Chet Baker: his life was one of self destruc on. The authors argue that this self
destruc on is a pa ern rising from roman c self tragic behaviours that legi mise their ar s c
value in their self destruc ve pa erns.
Jazz as a highbrow art that is meant for and consumed by the community of musicians themselves-
but they are nancially successful bc of the public; dichotomy of commerciality vs ar s c integrity.
Commercial success is seen as the opposite of ar s c excellence. Self destruc ve behaviours
enable merging the two, as the ar st is not playing to make money (commercial success) but to
fund the behaviour. Self destruc on shows that this commerciality is destroying the ar st from the
inside hence reinforcing its perceived ar s c integrity.
Framework it’s working in/theore cal BG:
- Aesthe c approach to marke ng theory: how the pictorial and aesthe c presenta on of Chet
in uenced its music. Baker’s career morphed into a visual and musical display of self-destruc on
which proved to have strong market poten al. His self destruc on was perceived as “roman c” in
the Wertherian sense of being unable to live live without being consumed by it.
Roman c understanding of the ar st as a tragic gure who uncompromisingly rejected bourgeois
sensibili es and deliberately avoids materialis c values. This Bohemian trajectory was taken by
many ar sts and was roman cised.
- Historical framework, marketplace mythology
Findings
The market nds the myth of ar s c self destruc on appealing bc “We are inspired by musicians
who are seen to resist the market in favour of bohemian ideals – even at the expense of ar s c
self-destruc on – because therein lies the possibility, for us Roman c consumers, of complete
market emancipa on and absten on from bourgeois conformity.”
Contribu on
This paper contributes to the aesthe c approach to marke ng (which usually focuses on exploring
the symbolic and hedonic components of aesthe c consump on, aesthe c consump on pa erns,
and how cultural products provide insights into consumer culture) by showing the importance of
how a marke sed aesthe c domain can be problema c. Self destruc on and human costs are the
results.
1
fl
titititi tififiti ti
titt ti ti ti ti
tt
titititi ti tititititi ti fititi ti ti
ti ti titititi ti ti ti ti ti ti tititititi ti tititt
tititi
