What makes an artist? The evolution and clustering of creative activity in the US since 1850

Karol Borowiecki and Christian Dahl

No 1/2021, Discussion Papers on Economics from University of Southern Denmark, Department of Economics

Abstract: This research illuminates the historical development and clustering of creative activity in the United States. Census data is used to identify creative occupations (i.e., artists, musicians, authors, actors) and data on prominent creatives, as listed in a comprehensive biographical compendium. The analysis first sheds light on the socio-economic background of creative people and how it has changed since 1850. The results indicate that the proportion of female creatives is relatively high, time constraints can be a hindrance for taking up a creative occupation, racial inequality is present and tends to change only slowly, and access to financial resources within a family facilitates the uptake of an artistic occupation. Second, the study systematically documents and quantifies the geography of creative clusters in the United States and explains how these have evolved over time and across creative domains.

Keywords: Creativity; artists; geographic clustering; agglomeration economies; urban history (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: N33 R10 Z11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 51 pages
Date: 2021-01-22
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cul, nep-geo, nep-his, nep-lma and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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Journal Article: What makes an artist? The evolution and clustering of creative activity in the US since 1850 (2021)
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