Jonathan T.D. Neil critiques art's economic versus cultural value debate

Jonathan T.D. Neil examines the persistent division between economic and cultural value in art discourse. David Throsby and Anita Zednik's 2014 paper 'The Economic and Cultural Value of Paintings: Some Empirical Evidence' demonstrates these values are related but distinct, not perfectly correlated. Critics like Dave Hickey and Sarah Thornton lament art market excesses while others champion aesthetic, political, or educational worth. Neil argues both sides engage in question-begging, with market values reduced to price fluctuations and cultural value becoming tautological. He references Michael Lewis's 'Flash Boys' to illustrate how market mechanisms obscure true value. The late Ronald Dworkin's concept of value as an 'interpretative concept' suggests interconnectedness rather than separation. Neil questions art's fundamental purpose—'what is art's good?'—rather than evaluating individual works. This challenges the common tendency to create incommensurable value categories. The article originally appeared in ArtReview's September 2014 issue.