John O'Hagan

Why Do Companies Sponsor Arts Events? Some Evidence and a Proposed Classification

Corporate philanthropy towards the arts isof long standing in the United States. There is nosuch tradition in Europe, but corporate sponsorship ofthe arts has been in place since the 1960s (seeFrémion, 1994). This paper will discuss thedifferences and similarities between these two formsof business support to the arts and then concentrateprimarily on corporate sponsorship. The motivationsfor companies to sponsor arts events are examined inthe context both of the literature relating to themotivations for corporate philanthropy and corporatepromotional/marketing expenditure. Results from asurvey of 69 companies that had sponsored 129 artsevents in Ireland are presented and compared to thelimited results from similar surveys elsewhere. Itis suggested that the motivations for such sponsorshipcan usefully be reduced to four: promotion ofimage/name, supply-chain cohesion, rent-seeking andnon-monetary benefit to managers/owners. The evidence for this from the survey, either directly available orimplicit in the responses to some other questions, issignificant.

The state and the arts : an analysis of key economic policy issues in Europe and the United States

Part 1 Policy rationale - why the State gets involved: non-private benefits information failures and distributional issues. Part 2 Policy implementation - how the State gets involved: regulation taxation direct expenditure. Part 3 Sectorial policy issues - effects of State involvement: art museums performing arts institutions.

National Museums: To Charge or not to charge?

This paper looks at the arguments for and against admission charges to national museums and provides some new evidence relating to the effects of charges. This debate is set in the context of the policy objective of access: the vast bulk of the population do not attend national museums and evidence on this and on the socioeconomic composition of those who attend is presented for Ireland.

Access to and participation in the arts: the case of those with low incomes/educational attainment

This paper looks at the issue of access to the arts in terms of the very unequal attendance at and audiences for the high arts by educational grouping. The meaning of equal access is analysed recent data for two countries, namely the United States and Ireland, are examined and new evidence is proffered. The constraints/barriers to, and the rationale for, more equal attendance/audiences are examined. The paper concludes by outlining a number of possible responses to this continuing problem.

Art Museums: Collections, Deaccessioning and Donations

This paper looks at three issues: the functions of art museums, the role of deaccessioning in this context and the importance of donations of works of art in contributing to the collection function. Donor restrictions it is argued should not be allowed to unduly influence the policy of an art museum, including that in relation to deaccessioning: this is especially the case given that often the state has paid, in the form of a tax expenditure, for the bulk of such donations.

Birth Location, Migration and Clustering of Important Composers: Historical Patterns

Abstract This article examines the 522 most important composers in the last 800 years, as identified by Charles Murray (2003), in terms of their birth location and migration. It also examines detailed patterns of migration and tendencies to cluster in certain cities for those composers born between 1750 and 1899. This information is compiled from the large, Grove Music Online (2009) encyclopedia. There is also some discussion of the biases evident in choosing “significant” composers. The data show a marked level of migration of important composers going back many centuries suggesting that the phenomenon of globalization had impacted on composers many centuries before its effects were more widespread. The data also show a marked level of clustering in certain cities.

Identifying the Most Important Artists in a Historical Context: Methods Used and Initial Results

The authors collect information on visual artists to allow a broad historical ranking of the most prominent artists. Their purpose is to examine the birth and work locations, and the consequential pattern of labor movement, of prominent artists over a number of long time periods. The article indicates that a relatively simple column-inch approach may suffice for the purpose of identifying the thousand or so most prominent artists, but that much more detailed source material is then required to examine the labor mobility experiences of these artists. A significant bias to the home or target market country is posited in the ranking of artists across countries, even in prestigious publications. Some preliminary data are provided on the ranking of artists by country of birth, covering a very broad historical sweep.

Export restrictions, tax incentives and the national artistic patrimony

Abstract This paper analyses the main forms of government intervention used in the UK to protect the national artistic patrimony. It examines the two most common policy measures used in the art market ‐ export regulation and tax incentives ‐ and reports their use over an eight‐year period from 1990 to 1998. It also reviews the UKs collective obligations to patrimony internationally and specifically as a member of the European Union. This is the first time that these related topics have been considered as a whole.