How does political and social art relate to the culture industry?

Martin Krenn: Roger Behrens

There are scores of different interests operating in the art scene/business. Politically engaged art is also in demand, albeit only as long as the “market” is not yet saturated. As demand increases, competition within the art field emerges. One’s own artistic practice, even when its intention is political, runs the danger of being fetishized as a commodity. Here it becomes pertinent to ask: how one should act to prevent this, and how can one respond to the situation of competitive rivalry in one’s own field of activity? Can one analyse this problematic by drawing on Critical Theory and what kind of role can the concept of the culture industry play here?