| Summary: | This study explores the relationships between four exemplary Canadian art magazines and the art world they inform and in which they are situated. The principal claim is that the visual art world has become a textual community by virtue of the premium placed on the printed word and the ties that have developed among individuals, such as artists and curators, and organizations, such as the magazines, funding agencies and the academy. === For theoretical direction the multidisciplinary study draws on communication theory, art history, the sociology of organizations and culture as well as management studies. Of principal importance are the media theories of Innis (1972, 1973) and the organizational formulations of DiMaggio (1985). Three types of investigation support the claims: (a) an historical account of the four magazines, which includes tracking the strategies the editors undertook, (b) a consideration of each periodical's rhetorical features and (c) a description of several networks in the art world which involve individuals and organizations. === The study then considers the deliberate and unintended consequences of the visual art world becoming a textual community, some of which are liberating while others are disabling. The study concludes by suggesting how the research undertaken contributes to current debates about the analysis of communications and culture.
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