UNEArt · Art, Politics, and Power: UNESCO and the Formation of a Transnational Contemporary Art Policy, between corporatism, elitism, and democratisation (1946-1980)

UNEArt is an interdisciplinary research project that critically investigates UNESCO’s role in shaping contemporary transnational art policy. It aims to develop a more nuanced and pluralistic understanding of how international organisations have influenced the contemporary global art landscape. Drawing on a rich body of unpublished material from both public and private archives, the project highlights the significance of conflict, negotiation, and compromise in UNESCO’s cultural governance processes, illustrating that the development of transnational art policies was the outcome of dynamic and often contentious exchanges between member states. UNEArt’s overarching objective is to rethink the relationship between politics and culture after WWII through the lens of international cultural policy, according to the principle of concordia discors, providing a more critical, historically grounded framework for understanding cultural diplomacy and institutional agency.The main goals of the research are:1.to analyse the process behind the development of a transnational contemporary art policy;2.to highlight the heuristic value of conflict in cultural governance;3.to reflect on the concept of the welfare state in the cultural field;4.to promote a secularised and non-deterministic view of historical processes, emphasising the role of individual agency and contingency;5.to contribute to broader debates on the interplay between politics and culture;6.to valorise UNESCO’s archival holdings, thereby enhancing European and global cultural heritage.The project will produce a scholarly monograph and an international conference organised by Sciences Po (Paris) under the patronage of UNESCO. These outcomes will not only advance academic understanding in this underexplored field but will also significantly contribute to the development of my international research profile and support my long-term career objective of securing a tenure-track position as Assistant Professor.