Les unions d'artistes, qu'ossa m'fait faire? : la subjectivation des artistes à travers les pratiques de leurs associations
This thesis explores the subjectification of artists as entrepreneurs of self through their professional unions’ practices. From a governmentality perspective, the first chapter of this thesis describes the cultural field in Quebec, the role played by the unions under study in this ‘dispositif’ and the formation of subjects. The second chapter addresses methodological questions : the construction of the archive and details about the interviews conducted. The foucaldian archive was adapted to incoporate interviews in order to analyse once at a time the subjectification implied through unions’ practices and the self-exercise of power by artists. The next three chapters present the analysis. The first chapter of analysis addresses the inclusion in unions (who has access to unions’ services). Even before artists can invest in themselves through unions’ services, the membership process already implies some enterprise of self. This chapter also introduces the notion of security on the labour market. The next chapter concentrates on the subject entrepreneur of self who invests in his security through unions’ services : professional training and savings banks. It presents membership as an investment in itself, which gives access to other investments, and explores, through the idea of experience, unions’ inflexibility as curbing the enterprise of self. Since artists’ careers are not isolated, the last chapter of analysis locates them in a broader context through the notions of market, passion and responsibilization. The conclusion summarizes the thesis and offers an epistemological questioning as well as a brief discussion on the schizophrenic subject in the neoliberal context.
Artists Professional unions Entrepreneur of self Governmentality