Research Proposal About Urban Art

Research Proposal About Urban Art
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Chapter 1
Background
Introduction
Urban art relates to art that is made displayed in public, including various forms of street art such as graffiti. This form of art is more expressive, and artists may operate outside the intermediation of conventional exhibition institutions, including art museums and galleries. Art has cultural and monetary value, but sometimes art is also used as politics where there is the reframing of the peoples' experiences (Zheng, 2019). Urban art is more common in the west, especially graffiti, while in China, there is greater oversight from local administrations for artists to display and make artwork in public. Urban artists resist and collaborate with conventional exhibition institutions. These contradictions affect the competing interests in the public space to allow urban artists to express their ideas and oversee their works. Urban branding and marketing efforts mean that some urban artists become more popular as they can bypass exhibition institutions to reach audiences and need these institutions for their works to be taken seriously.
Urban art focuses on the art of popular expression, urban experiences or lifestyles, and imagination. Still, this art is not necessarily accepted in the public spaces among those who see no value in the art. Despite this, urban art is increasingly popular in China, that there are various exhibitions of the art form in galleries and art museums. While Chinese art is often associated with landscape paintings and Ming vases, urban art in china explores different themes and ideas in a modern world. Nonetheless, there has only been slow growth in museums, public art galleries and auction houses, expositions when compared to the west. Still, there is increased demand for urban art in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai, while there is the clamor for an independent art scene that has less influence in Hong Kong.
Urban art as an expressive form
A focus on how artists explore urban landscapes and spaces can provide insights on their understanding of art and attitudes about visual expressions Street art and contemporary graffiti have not received much attention like in the west, yet, it is distinct and specific to Chinese urban public spaces (Valjakka, 2015 a). Typically, urban art is increased without institutional support, but it is broader than street art and mural art as it includes photography (Valjakka, 2015 b). However, there is an increased number of authorized or commissioned street artworks in China, partly reflecting political messages. In the past, Chinese authorities were more cautious in authorizing urban art that appeared subversive but now tolerates different art forms that are not overly crucial of the government or political commentary (Montefiore, 2014).
Branding
Urban art not only emphasizes self-expression, but it is also now used in branding cities, while branding and marketing strategies influence how people perceive art. This form of art is used to promote the urban public space at a time when there is greater interest in the art, the development of a ready market, and recognition of professional artists (Campos & Sequeira, 2020). This artistic movement and form of artistic expression are increasingly popular, and artists brand their artworks, including digital media.
Research Questions
General Question
* What factors influence urban art in China?
Specific Questions
* What are the factors influencing the popularity of urban art and purchasing decisions?
* How are marketing methods, brand influence, and strategy on urban art linked?
* What is the influence of art and branding among Chinese consumers?
Urban art is at a disadvantage compared to conventional art that is displayed in galleries, as there are more marketing efforts and cooperation among stakeholders in the arts scene who facilitate the accessibility of conventional art. China has a collectivist culture, and even as group affiliation and membership influence consumption of what is widely accepted, art lovers have diverse preferences. The commercialization of urban art has made it easier to access artworks from various artists, including the relatively unknown. Increasingly, it is common for artists to focus on marketing and branding urban artworks.
Chapter 2
Literature Review
Marketing and Advertising
Branding is associated with marketing and differentiating the products or services, and artists are focus on branding their work to gain more popularity in the market. Rodner & Kerrigan (2014) single out branding as a way to gain financial value for visual artists, where there is innovation and not merely product extensions or improvements as is common when there is a new product. Artists are more committed to self-expression and not following marketing trends. This makes artists unique since they brand to various actors in the art scene from museum dealers, galleries, art events, art schools, auction fairs, and collectors (Rodner & Kerrigan, 2014). Art dissemination is crucial to branding, and there may even be collaboration and cooperation with exhibition institutions. Yet, only a small proportion of the urban artists in China have worked together with these institutions. 
In artist-brand collaborations, the brands tend to associate with the artists to reach the target markets and mostly appeal to the younger generation. However, there is the transfer of association between art and brands and vice versa (Kim et al., 2018). Consumers who are exposed to brands associated with certain artists tend to purchase certain brands if they reflect their personalities. Still, then brands face a challenge to identify artists whose personality best represents the personalities of the target market. In other words, brands consider personality congruence where artworks are used in marketing so that the brand images are relevant to the consumers.
Increasingly, there is the brand–art collaboration where brand strategists work closely with the artists, mostly when there is a focus on the brand and product evaluation. Consumers have a good impression of the artwork. Baumgarth (2018) points out that brand management in the art world requires cooperation, collaboration, and inspiration, but people ought to identify with the images. The study further highlights that the art infusion effect where visual art influences consumers' perceptions of images and brands influences their preference for certain artwork and brands. Art is expressive, and branding can draw attention to certain messages, including social and political messages. Brand management improves brand quality and enhances the reputation of artists and their artworks.
Pricing
Pricing of artworks is one way to evaluate how people value the art form and art as well as demand. In a study by Schönfeld & Reinstaller (2007), the researchers singled out
The artist's reputation has a direct and positive effect on fine art pricing, while galleries, where their works were displayed had a negative effect. In the primary market segment, many of the artists and their artworks are relatively known, and this is the market where artworks are first sold (Schönfeld & Reinstaller, 2007). On the other hand, in the secondary art market, the artists are mostly well known, and there is more information available about the artwork and artists. Brand reputation influences how artists market their artwork such that when there is high uncertainty, there are likely to be fewer buyers in the primary market.
Accessing information
Access to information on urban art and other art forms is limited when most art is displayed in galleries and other institutions. Lee & Lee (2019) evaluating using the Saatchi Art online platform to improve efficiency and accessibility of information to bypass the barriers associated with physical galleries. Saatchi Art allows users to buy and sell artworks online. Artists also use the platform to enhance their reputation in the art world, where recommendations can make a big difference in their art world visibility. Digital art platforms are useful in marketing different forms of artwork. The interactions between artists and consumers affect the artwork's value more when there are fewer intermediaries in the art world. This is likely to be high interdependence of the institutions and influential people in the traditional art market than in the digital platforms that are more open to various stakeholders in the art world (Lee & Lee, 2019). 
Chapter 3
Methodol...