Introduction

This blog represents the collision of three interests: art, history, and economic interactions via trade. To blend my interests into a coherent study with worthwhile conclusions, I use artwork of specific periods to draw inferences about the relationship between art and trade throughout history. Each art piece or grouping of artwork includes an explanation of how art can reflect the economic situation of a particular region or culture at a specific time.


Before pursuing this investigation, it is worthwhile to clarify a few matters regarding the nature of art and the terms that are used frequently.


First, art is subjective. Unlike many aspects of economics, it is difficult to form infallible hypotheses since it is nearly impossible to quantify art or set specific standards of artisanship.  Even trying to compare art presents its difficulties since art fluctuates considerably throughout history and among cultures.


Thus, when there is mention of “advanced” art or techniques, there will be an accompanying phrase or brief explanation to discuss in what sense the art has advanced beyond the previous artwork in the region. In general, advanced artwork likely includes some or most of the following:


• The adoption of new techniques that allows an artist to produce art differently or more efficiently


• An artists’ ability to produce different art than previously found in their culture or refine their work to coincide with their society’s changing needs or definitions of beauty


• The development and utilization of perspectives, dimensions, and details to create a specific concept of space


• Subject clarity that evolves from art as a useful tool, to the representation of people and events, to the portrayal of abstract ideas


Second, I will need to clarify what the word “art” encompasses. In a variety of settings, the term “art” is frequently used synonymously with the term “craftsmanship,” though not without warrant. From the Merriam-Webster dictionary online to art textbooks, both art and craftsmanship include the concept of having knowledge of materials and the development of skills.  For this study, I looked at art that required skills that needed to be acquired through apprenticeship, study of the art or craft, or years of practice. The art created through this process is a product of those skills and often is a tangible object that can be traded as a commodity as well.


In the end, it is the artist who decides what art to create. The artist chooses the structure, the materials and tools to use, and the subject matter. This is an area of interest to this study. Then the question is, “why?”  Why did the artist choose to make the pottery, the portrait, or the sculpture?  Why did the artist use those materials?  How did the artist chose a particular subject matter to portray in his or her work? The answer to these questions often reflect, to some degree, the wealth of the area, the extent of the trade network, and the general economic stability (or lack thereof) of the region.


Therefore, this study of art seeks to see if natural economic inferences, drawn from artwork during a particular time period, coincide with actual economic conditions of the place, to the extent the economic conditions of the period studied could be determined.






*The inspiration for my ideas and definitions related to artwork come from the 11th Edition of Art Fundamentals: Theory and Practice, published by McGraw Hill in 2009. Pages 5-12.