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Hey you !
Does the concept of creative economy ring a bell? Architecture, arts, theater, cinema, music… It encompasses many sectors and a wide variety of skills. And yet, its definition is still unclear. Let’s take a look at this sector that some consider to be the most decisive of the 21st century. Passion Media explains everything you need to know!
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What is meant by creative economy ?
It’s still a vague concept, quite broad, but its features are beginning to take shape. It brings together 13 fields of activity: advertising, architecture, arts and antiques, crafts, design, fashion, cinema, interactive entertainment software, music, performing arts, publishing, software, television and radio. In short, a very wide range of industries, professions, and skills that makes one realize the scope and richness of this sector. And what do all these fields have in common? They are born thanks to the creativity and artistic skills of individual talent. It is usually the result of another economy: the Passion Economy. The meeting of passion and creativity in short. The key is a strong potential for wealth creation through the generation of intellectual property.
Good to know: The question then arises of artist robots like Ai-Da exhibited at the Design Museum in London. Creative economy or not? We’ll let you decide.
The origins of the creative economy concept
At the beginning, people talked about creative industry. The term was not to everyone’s taste, but it allowed to associate it with the notion of market, of value creation. It is in a way the 2.0 version of the so-called cultural industry (theater, music, dance, cinema, visual arts, etc.). And for good reason, the notion of industry makes more and more sense today: the sector represents a key part of the economy of countries (creation of jobs, wealth, etc…). And it goes further. The creative economy has a financial impact, but also a social, cultural and political one. Even outside of social network, that’s why it’s interesting.
A real economic lever
The extent of the creative economy is currently difficult to assess, as there is no study dedicated to the sector, which makes it difficult to measure. Another point that hinders the analysis is simply its framework: what is included in the creative economy and what is not. If we push the comparison exercise a little further, we can consider that the sector is close to the film industry or music. One thinks that the creative economy must have a dizzying impact!
The key notion of intellectual property
The concept? Assessing the value of an idea, of a creation. The condition? That it can be protected by copyright, patent, trademark or any other legal and regulatory mechanism. In other words? It is the price that one agrees to attribute to a work in order to possess it and which allows to protect it. This allows to prevent any copy or commercial detour without the authorization of the person who owns the rights. What is the difference with a classical object ? There is certainly an objective notion (the cost of the realization, the human time, etc…) but also subjective. This can lead to things that may seem very surprising to some. An example? This invisible work, sold for 15 000€.
Good to know: Have you heard about the emergence of NFT (Non Fungible Token)? These are non-material works, therefore virtual and digital (tweets, gifs, videos). Some people are willing to pay millions to own them. The latest example? $600,000 to own the Nyan Cat gif. The NFT market already represented 2 billion euros of investment in the first quarter of 2021.
The limits of the creative economy
The definition is still under debate. Indeed, the notion of creativity could, according to some, be attributed to other sectors such as engineering, biosciences, etc… There is also the question of the impact of technology. An exhibition “Artists and Robots” was recently held at the Grand Palais in Paris where the question was asked: what if the machine and artificial intelligence could replace the artist? In 2015, Google made quite a few waves with its AI Deep Dream. It generated works from existing images and based on the principle of pareidolia (or the idea of imagining forms in the clouds). It was even called inceptionism.
This definition does not distinguish between the people who are at the origin of this intellectual property value (the creators of the work) and the people who are at the origin of the work.
The evolution of thinking about the creative industries
The notion of creative economy is still evolving. Some countries include gastronomy, others publishing, advertising, software. Technology is reshuffling the deck entirely. The fusion between this field and the historical fields of the creative industry has generated new skills and professions. On the other hand, should we also measure the non “creative” jobs in the field or simply those that consist of creating the added value itself? The Nesta organization even goes so far as to say that creative jobs in non-creative industries are greater in volume than creative jobs in creative industries. Finally, the notion of creativity is constantly evolving. It was not the same 200 years ago, and will probably be completely different in 100 years. In short, it’s enough to make your brain twitch.
And what will the creative economy be tomorrow?
If we don’t have official figures at the moment, the impact of this field in terms of distinctive element and image for a country, a region, a geographical area is essential. Japan is known worldwide for its manga, France for its gastronomy, the United States for its film industry, England for its music. In short, the creative industry is a considerable weight in the influence of countries. The sector must be better supervised by implementing aid policies, evaluations and studies of its evolution and its impact on society. All these measures will contribute to its development in the medium term.
The last definition proposed? It was shared by Nesta in 2014 and here it is: the creative economy is the sector specialized in the use of creative talent for commercial purposes. Ah, last point. Some even go so far as to say that oil was the fuel of the 20th century economy, and creativity will be the fuel of the 21st. In short, it’s a subject we’re still hearing about.
And precisely, a little challenge just for you […] Ask your entourage, your friends, your colleagues, your family if they consider themselves part of the creative economy. What a great way to start a debate!
