Actor-Art Theory

Since its beginnings, Actor-Network Theory (ANT) has shown numerous traces of an intensive engagement with art and visual culture. In her monograph, Annika Weinert-Brieger systematically follows these traces for the first time through the writings of Bruno Latour, John Law, and Michel Callon, as well as through the exhibitions curated by Latour and other media. She explores the extensive material in the first international survey on the topic and insightfully contextualizes it within existing approaches from art history, art theory, and the sociology of art. In doing so, she reveals a distinct area of focus within ANT that has been overlooked in its reception so far. Subsequently, Weinert-Brieger develops ANT into an art-theoretical approach to artworks, their production, and reception. In a translation between ANT and art theory, which takes its starting point from recent theoretical discussions on art and agency, she works out the central elements of an Actor-Art Theory and demonstrates its contributions to both contemporary and historical theoretical discourses. Finally, she provides an overview of the theoretical and empirical research potential for future work arising from the findings of the survey and the Actor-Art Theory developed in this monograph.