Output details

The persistence of bohemia

I am an early career researcher, and my research explores the politics and social conditions of knowledge and cultural production. The article draws on findings and insights from my PhD research project and book Artistic Lives (Ashgate, 2013). The PhD research explored the working and living conditions for freelancers in the arts. In particular, it examined factors outside of arts funding and cultural policy such as the cost of housing, as well as benefits and employment. The PhD project represents my first significant attempt to explore these issues. Whilst the project is based in cultural studies, it also draws on other fields such as urban sociology and social policy studies. It is thus an interdisciplinary project and I hope it and planned outputs such as this one will be read by academics within a range of fields including urban sociology, cultural studies and those researching the cultural economy, as well as practitioners.

The article explores the myths of the bohemian lifestyle, and its popularisation through mass culture, the popularity of the ‘artist’s loft’ (drawing on Sharon Zukin’s work), as well as its globalization – as cities such as Berlin become seen as international destinations for followers of a bohemian lifestyle. The article then examines the marketing of the bohemian lifestyle by property developers and city officials in Berlin.

Many of my colleagues are practitioners, and several research the politics and social conditions of cultural production. Here, my work informs and engages with debates that take place within this research community and the ongoing development of our attention to the production cultures.