The persistence of cultural divides – Reflections on the audience for culture and the arts in Norway

Abstract

How does cultural policy shape the audience for culture and art? The article discusses this question in relation to Norwegian cultural policy and its explicit goal of promoting equal access and inclusion. The background for the egalitarian tradition in cultural life of Norway is outlined. Three factors that structure the audience for culture and the arts are then discussed, namely income, place of residence and education. It is argued that the explicit concern for equality of access has alleviated some of the economic and geographical barriers toward participation, but has had little impact on the cultural divides that tend to structure audiences for culture and the arts. Specific attention is given to the persistent effects of education on cultural interests and attendance at cultural arrangements. The effects of education are related to general traits of educational institutions – particularly academic institutions – that are only marginally influenced by cultural policy measures.

Keywords:

• cultural policy
• audiences
• social inequality
• cultural divides
• Norwegian culture

Notes

1. The article focuses on themes that have been subjects of previous studies, both by the current author (Danielsen 2006), and by Statistics Norway (Vaage 2000, 2001, 2005). There are obvious limitations in the available data – especially in the classification of cultural forms and genres employed by Statistics Norway – and therefore numerous issues that deserve to be considered in future research which employs a more refined classification of cultural forms.

2. Some of the earlier – and internationally less known – plays by Henrik Ibsen were born out of this situation. Ibsen’s major verse drama and morality play from 1867, Per Gynt – accompanied by the music composed at Ibsen’s request by Edvard Grieg – had by 1900 gained status as a kind of epic of national identity; perhaps somewhat unlikely because of its elements of opaque symbolism and its implicit critic of national chauvinism, but also befitting since the play thematically revolves around a restless search for identity.

3. It is worth stressing that this study does not include any attempts at a cross‐national comparative analysis. The data used as background material were not collected for the purpose of such comparison, and we have not had access to more suitable data.

4. The fact that one of the leading contemporary art museums in Oslo – the Astrup Fearnly Museum for Contemporary Art – is established and funded by one of Norway’s distinguished shipping families is only one conspicuous example of this legacy.

5. The reasons for using the fine arts as a prime indicator in relation to economy are twofold: First, art – due to the long tradition of patronage and investments in art – is a cultural genre where the audience’s purchasing power could possibly make a difference for attendance. Secondly, it is known from previous studies that interest in art and attendance at art exhibitions tend to differentiate among various audience segments. Attendance at art exhibitions, and attendance at concerts with classical and contemporary orchestral music, are analysed in this article not only for the sake of saying something about art or music. The data is used as a general indicator of highly legitimate cultural activities.

6. We do for instance lack data on entrance fees at the arrangements that the respondents report they have attended.

7. The included arrangements/places were: Ultima – a festival for ‘contemporary music’; Astrup Fearnly – a museum for contemporary art; Blå – a venue for modern jazz and experimental music; Nationaltheatret – The National Theatre, Oslo’s oldest and largest theatre; Oslo‐Filharmonien – The Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra; Nasjonalgalleriet – The National Gallery, Oslo’s oldest and largest museum for the fine arts.

8. Statistical tests for time dependent trends, and for statistical interactions between year of data collection, educational level, and cultural interest and attainment, showed no significant effects.

9. A more sophisticated research design would have taken into account differences between different categories of students. A study of the cultural preferences of students in Bergen, conducted by Hovden and Gripsrud, shows marked differences in cultural preferences and activities among students at various educational institutions in Bergen (Gripsrud and Hovden 2000, Hovden 2002). The data currently at hand is based on a much broader sample, but unfortunately does not allow for breakdown on different categories of students.

10. See Bourdieu (1991) for discussions of the relationships between social power and ‘struggles over classifications’.