Power Structures in Cultural and Creative Industries

Posted: January 4th, 2023

Power Structures in Cultural and Creative Industries

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The Concept of Cultural and Creative Industries

Introduction

            I will look at interplay between power structures and the running of cultural and creative industries.

• The idea of cultural industries is not a new concept and it refers to the formation, industrial reproduction, and distribution of cultural productions.
• Max Horkheimer and Theodore Adorno coined the term in 1948, and nearly half a century has elapsed since they introduced the concept.
• The production and distribution of cultural products has since improved (Warren & Tettoni 2006).
• Cultural firms have adopted, in addition to adapting to technological changes and the transforming place of media in society, intricate production forms and large scale distribution styles to reach international markets.
• The cultural and creative industries place emphasis on services, goods, and operations of artistic and cultural or heritage form, whose originality depends on human creativity, whether present or past.
• The sector underscores the essential functions of each facet of the cultural value chain that permits activities, services, and goods to reach the market and the public (Warren & Tettoni 2006).
• The definition, therefore, is not only restricted to only the outcome of industrial reproduction and human creativity but encompasses other acts that add to the production and distribution of creative and cultural products.

The Cultural Products

• The cultural and creative industries focus on developing cultural products that appeal to consumers or viewers. Lee and Littrell (2003) define cultural products as encompassing materials and components such as ceramics, wood, glass, textiles, metal, and glass, and production technologies and aesthetic features that are largely entranced in the artists’ traditions.
• Hand production is essential in the production of cultural products, although many artists nowadays enhance production through the use of machines, molds, and several other mechanized equipment for processing raw materials, creating products, and finishing artisanal products (Lee & Littrell 2003).
• Cultural products often include what are typically known as handcrafts and other components on a level of hand-to-machine production
• Some cultural products that are formed from wood and fiber, however, are open to trade limitations. Textile quotas, for instance, have restricted the amount of textiles traded between nations (Lee & Littrell 2003).
• Wood products are mostly open to sustainability challenges, with some environmentally–threatened plants and weeds restricted from import within particular nations.

The Influence of Power Structures on Cultural Products

• The power structure in an organization or community can have considerable impact on how people interact with each other or how things happen.
• The power structure refers to the system that influences interaction between people in a way that creates change. The power structure provides the energy to get things done, and details how authority and power is distributed between different people, within institutions and large groups such as the society, an organization, or the government (Sohmen 2013).
• A power structure may either be formal and strategically formed to increase values such as efficiency and fairness, as it happens with hierarchical firms where all entities apart from one are subject to other entities.
• Alternatively, a power structure could take an informal approach as it happens with friends who interact in a group, often authoritatively, to make a hierarchy.
• Regardless of the power structure, the system and way of interaction usually have significant influence on the outcome. Power structures play important roles in the cultural and creative sectors in the way they influence the emergence and nature of cultural products.
• The guidance the organizational leaders provide depending on the mandate offered to them by the power structure plays a vital role in determining the nature of the outcome of any work that a group of people does (Sohmen 2013).
• The influence the leadership structure has on performance should encourage organizations to develop structures that allow for better chance for every person’s growth and participation because this offers the chance to improve the outcome’s quality.
• It is possible to witness the effectiveness of power structures on the development of cultural products by examining the leadership structures in companies and institutions that focus on producing cultural products.
• Examining the power structure at Royal Academy of Arts, which operates as an art institution, for example, may provide adequate insight into how the guidelines set to guide how people act influence their actions and ultimate performance in the production of cultural products.
• The institution based in Burlington House, London, enjoys a unique autonomy, and is one of the leading producers of eminent architects and artists (Royal Academy 2020).
• The main objective for the Royal Academy Arts is to encourage the enjoyment, appreciation, and formation of visual arts through education, debates, and exhibitions.
• The organization neither receives funding from the Crown nor the state, nor mainly generates its revenue from the subscriptions of its corporate members and friends. The Royal Academy of Arts also gets its funds from endowment and trust funds, exhibitions, trading operations, and sponsorship from industrial and commercial firms, in which the institution was one of the initiators.
• The Royal Academy embraces a power structure that has significant influence on the production of cultural productsThe leadership structure achieves the goal by training those who will be part of the upcoming generation by offering them an avenue to debate and discuss what they feel will improve their presentation (Royal Academy 2020).
• The urge to work as a team developed in the 1760s when a group of nearly 40 architects and artists joined hands with the initial president, Sir Joshua Reynolds, placing considerable efforts to create a leadership structure where people relate as a team to achieve the set goals and objectives.
• Organizations that embrace a hierarchy system where members work as a team increase their chances of developing products of high quality, and which meet the consumers’ needs and expectations.
• A power structure that encourages team work allows people to give their opinions regardless of their position in the system, and increases the chances of achieving the desired goals and objectives.
• The collaborative power structure at the Royal Academy, for example, allows for close interaction with everyone, which offers the chance to introduce new artistic approaches and architectural concepts (Royal Academy 2020).
• Working closely with each other provides the chance to express one’s opinions without fear of intimidation, which makes it possible to achieve considerable growth and development of the learners and everybody else.
• The collaborative power structure at the Royal Academy has considerable influence on the nature of cultural products from the institution. The approach creates the chance to work with other groups, including Art Clubs, private firms, and governmental institutions, which introduce members to a wide range of concepts regarding the production of their works (Royal Academy 2020).
• The power structure allows for the formation of various departments that ensure affiliate members interact with other parties on multiple levels.
• The Artistic Director, the Director of Learning and Collections, and the Secretary and Chief Executive, for example, all work together regardless of their different positions and responsibilities to make sure that the that the trainees achieve the best and become more competent in their respective areas (Royal Academy 2020).
• In addition, the leadership provides the chance for close interaction between instructors and trainees, introducing young people to better ways of producing art and other cultural products.
• The power structure at the Royal Academy appears to be committed to improving how both the trainers and trainees develop cultural products by introducing the Executive MA in Cultural Leadership program that equip people with world-class knowledge that would influence how they come up with cultural products.
• The people in charge of the organization’s operations opted to introduce the Executive MA in Cultural Leadership to provide trainees with a remarkable chance to asses, discuss, and deliberate on broad professional and scholarly networks in culture and arts (Royal Academy 2020).
• The leaders in all departments concur that the course offers a world-wide view of business and artwork in an interconnected view. The power structure is in such a way that trainees are open to acquire information and learn from senior members of the faculty, in charge of cutting-edge researches across fields (Royal Academy 2020).
• It is apparent that the introduction of the MA program shows the leadership’s commitment to shape how trainees produce cultural programs.
• Overall, the power structure at the Royal Academy does not put strict adherence to the hierarchical pattern where some people enjoy higher positions than others, but instead it presents the chance to serve as a team.
• The collaboration is essential empowering the trainees into individuals who have the capacities to produce cultural products that people appreciate and acknowledge as being appealing and of high quality.
• It is highly likely that the trainees’ performance would not be as effective as it appears if the organization relied on a power structure that supports an authoritarian system and does not give junior members the chance to contribute towards the organizational practices.
• The Royal Academy should be committed to improving on areas that do not appear to support the desired goals and objectives by identifying its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and strengths to know the areas that require considerable adjustment.

Conclusion

• The Royal Academy would not want to use power inappropriately as it happens with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry and Meghan, respectively.
• The two members of the Royal family, Morgan writes, do not seem to recognize what their flamboyant lifestyle mean to them and their position.
• Harry and Meghan exploit their opportunity as Duke and Duchess by spending money on what may be termed as secondary, and do not seem to acknowledge the effects of their extravagance. Such ignorance shows how it is possible to abuse power, which often comes with severe repercussions.
• Harry and Meghan, for instance, may never get the chance to ascend to the throne because of their present deeds if the criticism against them becomes too much and of public concern.
• The practices by Harry and Meghan that Morgan considers to be inappropriate, should provide valuable lessons to the leaders at the Royal Academy who learn the importance of respecting the position and doing what others appreciate.

Reference List

Lee, E, & Littrell, M 2003, ‘Web sites for cultural products: Marketing potential for U.S.

            consumers,’ Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, vol. 7, no. 4, 356-370.

Morgan, P 2020, Why the Queen must FIRE Their Royal Hustlers: Deluded Meghan and Harry

            should be stripped of their titles before this pair of grasping, selfish, scheming

            Kardashian-wannabes bring down the Monarchy, says PIERS MORGAN. Available

            from: < https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-7868371/PIERS-MORGAN-Queen-

            FIRE-Royal-Hustlers.html> [March 26, 2020]

Royal Academy 2020, Royal Academy. Available from: <https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/>

            [March 26, 2020]

Sohmen, V 2013, ‘Leadership and teamwork: Two sides of the same coin,’ Journal of IT and

            Economic Development, vo. 4, no. 2, pp. 1-18.

Warren, W, & Tettoni, I 2006, Arts and Crafts of Thailand, Chronicle Books, San Francisco.