Infrastructuring independent cultural production : Empirical and conceptual explorations
Nehl, Marthe LU
(2025)
- Abstract
- This thesis engages with the phenomenon of independent cultural production, which empirically shows itself as an idea(l) of self-determined cultural production and collaboration made possible through numerous different relationships. Independence, as a relational concept, achieved through in(ter)dependencies is what this thesis sets out to explore. Definitions of independence in cultural production are not set in stone, they allow and require cultural actors to organise themselves within a field of tension characterised by societal expectations and limited spatial, financial and personnel resources, with increasing political headwinds. Hence, turning to the conditions of independent cultural production is timely, given the rapid urban... (More)
- This thesis engages with the phenomenon of independent cultural production, which empirically shows itself as an idea(l) of self-determined cultural production and collaboration made possible through numerous different relationships. Independence, as a relational concept, achieved through in(ter)dependencies is what this thesis sets out to explore. Definitions of independence in cultural production are not set in stone, they allow and require cultural actors to organise themselves within a field of tension characterised by societal expectations and limited spatial, financial and personnel resources, with increasing political headwinds. Hence, turning to the conditions of independent cultural production is timely, given the rapid urban redevelopments, increasing budget cuts and curtailed freedom of expression. Theoretically, the thesis draws on the concept of infrastructure and its conceptions in both science and technology studies as well as urban and cultural studies. In the thesis, it is applied both to capture the phenomenon of independent cultural production with its conditioning relational context and to analytically unpack the processes and practices through which independence is jointly achieved, again and again. The concept carries a temporal orientation towards the long term and centres agents that maintain and care, thereby presenting a productive counterpart to the project-dominated present. Based on two case studies in the European context, and diverse datasets consisting of observations, semi-structured interviews, policy papers and archival documents, independent cultural production is realised through infrastructuring interdependencies at the local and transnational level, and the different papers examine their mutual dependence with peers and non-arts and cultural actors, in a residential neighbourhood, a transnational network, and in collaborative policy-making. At the neighbourhood level, artists and cultural workers infrastructure as they negotiate and stabilise their (spatial) conditions in service-entanglements (Paper I). At the transnational level, independent cultural centres activate and maintain communal ties as they engage in eventified network meetings, resulting in experiences of togetherness, which nourishes future infrastructuring and maintenance of a bi-annual meeting pattern providing continuity for advocacy (Paper II) and policy-making (Paper III). Paper IV draws the findings to a close and suggests the application of infrastructure through an analytical focus on practices of embedding and foregrounding, laying open the necessary and strategic practices of interrelating with people, politics, and spaces that constitute the conditions of independent cultural production. (Less)
- Abstract (Swedish)
- Denna avhandling undersöker oberoende kulturproduktion som idé(al) och fenomen, särskilt den centrala roll som samarbeten och ömsesidiga beroenden har för oberoende kulturaktörer. Samtida oberoende kulturproduktion både tillåter och kräver organisering i ett spänningsfält av olika förväntningar och begränsade rumsliga, finansiella och mänskliga resurser. I en tid av allt starkare politisk motvind, snabba stadsutvecklingsprocesser, budgetnedskärningar och begränsningar i yttrandefriheten är det angeläget att fördjupa kunskapen om villkoren för oberoende kulturproduktion i detta spänningsfält.
Teoretiskt kretsar avhandlingen kring begreppet infrastruktur och dess tolkningar inom vetenskaps- och teknikstudier likaväl som urbana studier... (More) - Denna avhandling undersöker oberoende kulturproduktion som idé(al) och fenomen, särskilt den centrala roll som samarbeten och ömsesidiga beroenden har för oberoende kulturaktörer. Samtida oberoende kulturproduktion både tillåter och kräver organisering i ett spänningsfält av olika förväntningar och begränsade rumsliga, finansiella och mänskliga resurser. I en tid av allt starkare politisk motvind, snabba stadsutvecklingsprocesser, budgetnedskärningar och begränsningar i yttrandefriheten är det angeläget att fördjupa kunskapen om villkoren för oberoende kulturproduktion i detta spänningsfält.
Teoretiskt kretsar avhandlingen kring begreppet infrastruktur och dess tolkningar inom vetenskaps- och teknikstudier likaväl som urbana studier och kulturstudier. Infrastrukturbegreppet används både för att belysa oberoende kulturproduktion som självinitierade praktiker i form av samarbeten både inom och utanför kultursektorn och dess villkorande relationella kontext. Begreppet har en tidsmässig riktning mot det långsiktiga och fokuserar på aktörer som över längre tid upprätthåller och vårdar möjligheterna till oberoende kulturproduktion, och utmanar därmed en projektdominerad nutid.
Avhandlingen bygger på två fallstudier i den europeiska kontexten. Materialet för avhandlingen omfattar observationer, semistrukturerade intervjuer, samt policy- och arkivdokument. I avhandlingen visas hur oberoende kulturproduktion realiseras genom infrastruktureringen av ömsesidiga beroenden på lokal och transnationell nivå. De fyra artiklarna i avhandlingen undersöker ömsesidiga beroenden mellan kollegor och aktörer innanför och utanför konst- och kultursektorn, i ett bostadsområde, ett transnationellt nätverk, respektive i ett samarbetsbaserat policyprojekt. På grannskapsnivån sker infrastruktureringen genom konstnärers och kulturarbetares förhandling och säkring av (rumsliga) villkor i form av service-entanglements (Artikel I). På den transnationella nivån skapar och upprätthåller oberoende kulturcenter gemenskapsband genom medverkan till festivaliserade nätverksmöten, som skapar upplevelser av gemenskap. Dessa ger i sin tur näring åt framtida infrastrukturering. De halvårsvis återkommande nätverksmötena formar själva den infrastruktur som ger nätverket stabilitet och möjliggör kontinuerlig opinionsbildning (Artikel II), respektive medverkan i policyprocesser (Artikel III). Artikel IV sammanfattar resultaten och föreslår hur begreppet infrastruktur kan användas inom fältet. Genom att förstå infrastrukturering som inbäddning och framhävande får kulturaktörerna verktyg att relatera på nya sätt till människor, politik och rum, som tillsammans skapar villkoren för oberoende kulturproduktion.
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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/9927a0ed-f8a7-4fed-a777-581b4b6b82a2
- author
- Nehl, Marthe
LU
- supervisor
- opponent
-
- Professor Cnossen, Boukje, Leuphana University
- organization
- alternative title
- Infrastrukturering och oberoende kulturproduktion : empiriska och konceptuella undersökningar
- publishing date
- 2025-10
- type
- Thesis
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Independent cultural production, infrastructure, cultural network, cultural policy
- pages
- 129 pages
- publisher
- Lund University (Media-Tryck)
- defense location
- U203, Universitetsplatsen 2, Helsingborg
- defense date
- 2025-11-19 13:15:00
- ISBN
- 9789181044874
- 9789181044881
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 9927a0ed-f8a7-4fed-a777-581b4b6b82a2
- date added to LUP
- 2025-10-19 20:28:41
- date last changed
- 2025-10-24 08:24:57
@phdthesis{9927a0ed-f8a7-4fed-a777-581b4b6b82a2,
abstract = {{This thesis engages with the phenomenon of independent cultural production, which empirically shows itself as an idea(l) of self-determined cultural production and collaboration made possible through numerous different relationships. Independence, as a relational concept, achieved through in(ter)dependencies is what this thesis sets out to explore. Definitions of independence in cultural production are not set in stone, they allow and require cultural actors to organise themselves within a field of tension characterised by societal expectations and limited spatial, financial and personnel resources, with increasing political headwinds. Hence, turning to the conditions of independent cultural production is timely, given the rapid urban redevelopments, increasing budget cuts and curtailed freedom of expression. Theoretically, the thesis draws on the concept of infrastructure and its conceptions in both science and technology studies as well as urban and cultural studies. In the thesis, it is applied both to capture the phenomenon of independent cultural production with its conditioning relational context and to analytically unpack the processes and practices through which independence is jointly achieved, again and again. The concept carries a temporal orientation towards the long term and centres agents that maintain and care, thereby presenting a productive counterpart to the project-dominated present. Based on two case studies in the European context, and diverse datasets consisting of observations, semi-structured interviews, policy papers and archival documents, independent cultural production is realised through infrastructuring interdependencies at the local and transnational level, and the different papers examine their mutual dependence with peers and non-arts and cultural actors, in a residential neighbourhood, a transnational network, and in collaborative policy-making. At the neighbourhood level, artists and cultural workers infrastructure as they negotiate and stabilise their (spatial) conditions in service-entanglements (Paper I). At the transnational level, independent cultural centres activate and maintain communal ties as they engage in eventified network meetings, resulting in experiences of togetherness, which nourishes future infrastructuring and maintenance of a bi-annual meeting pattern providing continuity for advocacy (Paper II) and policy-making (Paper III). Paper IV draws the findings to a close and suggests the application of infrastructure through an analytical focus on practices of embedding and foregrounding, laying open the necessary and strategic practices of interrelating with people, politics, and spaces that constitute the conditions of independent cultural production.}},
author = {{Nehl, Marthe}},
isbn = {{9789181044874}},
keywords = {{Independent cultural production; infrastructure; cultural network; cultural policy}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Lund University (Media-Tryck)}},
school = {{Lund University}},
title = {{Infrastructuring independent cultural production : Empirical and conceptual explorations}},
url = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/230785359/Nehl_Kappa.pdf}},
year = {{2025}},
}