Art and economics have entertained a complex and decisive relationship since ancient times. But for over a century, what is at stake goes far beyond the mere art market: what we face now is the commodification of all that is visible. We live in a world that is increasingly saturated with images. The photographs, drawings, paintings, videos, films, digital works and multimedia installations selected for the exhibition cast a keen and watchful eye over these issues. On the one hand, they reflect the upheavals that currently affect economics in general, whether in terms of unprecedentedly large storage spaces, scarce raw materials, labour and its mutations towards immaterial forms of work, or in terms of value and its new manifestations, such as cryptocurrencies. At the same time, however, these artists' works repeatedly interrogate the future of images and things visible in the age of their globalised 'iconomics'.
This exhibition catalogue is a collection of short texts providing a wide range of perspectives on the economics of the image and images of the economy. A number of classic essays have also been reproduced, in part or in full. Includes contributions from Emmanuel Alloa, Herve Aubron, Matthias Bruhn, Yves Citton, Elena Esposito, Maurizio Lazzarato, Catherine Malabou, Marie Rebecchi, Marta Ponsa, Antonio Somaini, Peter Szendy, Leah Temper, Elena Vogman, Dork Zabunyan and Miren Etxezarreta Zubizarreta.
