From the Inner Workings of Innovation to Historical Accounts of Artistic Development

What mechanisms drive innovation in art? How does exploring this question incite broader understandings of the history of artistic movements? This paper examines innovation in Brazilian artistic movements over the 20^th century. A look at the local, regional and international dynamics that impacted these movements reveals repeating mechanisms that both facilitate and limit innovation. The study of Brazilian artists and movements reveals processes relevant to the broader, historical development of artistic movements in Latin America. Methodologically, the focus on innovation in art worlds requires constant shifting among analytical levels in order to grasp transnational influences, the interactions of global and local actors, and the dynamic of change and transformation in art worlds. Adding a relational focus to this multi-level approach helps to unveil the channels whereby artists and their movements develop. The study describes three stages in the evolution of art movements in Brazil over the 20^th century. First, a concern with authenticity that led to explorations of “native” Brazilian cultural heritage; second, a fragmented notion of national culture that built on mid-century populism; and third, the critical and grounded incorporation of diverse cultural elements within an international and, in some cases, global cultural sphere. The identification of mechanisms that repeat over time with each step in the development of an artistic trajectory is a tool that may be applied beyond this case. These mechanisms shed light on widely recognized phenomena such as revivalism, nationalism, counterculture and political engagement in art. The paper demonstrates, both empirically and analytically, how it is possible through the study of innovation, to build a broader narrative of the struggles through which artists and their audiences build identities within national contexts.