Henrik Fürst
Biographic Data
| ID | 84796 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Henrik Fürst |
| GIVEN NAMES | Henrik |
| FAMILY NAME | Fürst |
| SIGNATURE | FÜRST H |
| AFFILIATIONS | Stockholm University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-7716-4631 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 19 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 36 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 19 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2016 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 5 |
Promoting Nordicness through prizes: Regional soft power in speeches at the Nordic Council Prizes award ceremonies (1962–2012)
Recent geopolitical developments have placed Nordic cooperation on the agenda. As an important institution of Nordic cooperation, the Nordic Council has historically been outperformed by the EU and NATO in matters of hard power (e.g. economic and military cooperation), and has instead prioritized influence through soft power (e.g. cultural diplomacy). The article demonstrates how the Nordic Council, through what we call regional soft power, promo…
The conservative revolution revisited: The blending of art and commerce in four Western publishing fields
Conducts a comparative analysis of contemporary publishing fields in France, Germany, Sweden, and the United States. • Reveals the oligopolistic structure of publishing fields in which media corporations monopolize access to the mass market and marginalize independent publishers into niche markets. • Documents the blending of artistic and commercial editorial strategies at the poles of restricted production and mass production. The publishing ind…
Framing New Art: Performances by the Tribe of Avant-Garde
Performance art is a genre in which artists use their bodies as a medium of expression to create physical presence. Performances revolve around the ambition to create something that transcends existing frames of what is seen as art; its raison d'être is novelty and change. But how is new art established? This article empirically addresses this question by studying performance artists who take part in performance art festivals organized around the…
Enforced freedoms: Testing art students’ artistic engagements in a folk high school
Drawing on convention theory and sociology of critique, this article examines how teachers at a Swedish folk high school coordinate students’ activities through tests. Through ethnographic descriptions of exercises, assignments, presentations, and exhibitions that test students’ engagement, it is shown how the teachers seek to depart from the standardized assessment procedure associated with formalized schooling. More specifically, the teachers’ …
Splendid isolation: Managing time and making culture among novelists during the pandemic
While many public performances of culture were shut down during much of the pandemic, the homes of many artists became prominent places for making culture. In particular, the pandemic created a rift in the temporal and spatial organization of work and leisure, affecting time management. This article turns to the creative lives of 32 novelists in Sweden who were interviewed online over video in 2020 and 2021. Using the example of these authors, th…
The Value of Art Education: Cultural Engagements at the Swedish Folk High Schools
Resonant Reviews: Experiencing Accurate Readings and Indicators of Literary Accomplishment Among Reviewed Novelists
Artists both desire and dread reviews of their work by media critics. This article draws upon 66 interviews with Swedish novelists in order to examine their experiences of being publicly reviewed. A ‘successful’ reception creates resonant experiences that can be examined on two levels. On the level of interpersonal responsiveness, the authors’ longing to be genuinely understood through the engagement of others with their work is occasionally reci…
Continuing in a creative career: Claiming an artistic identity and aligning trajectories among early career novelists
Most artists who venture into an artistic career discontinue after their debut work. This article contributes to the understanding of early artistic career discontinuation and continuation by drawing on 53 mainly longitudinal interviews with early-career Swedish novelists. The article develops interactionist theories of careers and social worlds, and suggests that continuation of literary careers depends on realizing an artistic identity and the …
Arrival to a fictional total institution: The Swedish folk high school as a liminal space in literature
Arrivals have an unexplored significance as a phenomenon in sociology. This article studies depictions of arrivals to art education courses at Swedish folk high schools in fiction. These arrivals are liminal transitions between two states, warranting personal change, either being the solution to a previous problem or creating a problem (to be solved). Many spaces in society have lost their status as total institutions physically and symbolically …
Value of Art Education: Cultural Engagements at the Swedish Folk High Schools
The Curse of the Difficult Second Book: Continuation and Discontinuation in Early Literary Careers
Among artists who have made their debut, a minority will become credited a second time in their career. This article investigates why some fiction authors continue publishing books while others do not. The study tracks all 1479 novelists, who published their first book between 2001 and 2010 in Sweden, including their literary activities and the literary reception of the book and data on any second book published within eight years after the first…
Creative Visions in New York City's Contemporary Art Scene
To Review a Book Is to Take a Risk: Looking at Book Reviewing from Inside the Critics’ Circle
The worth of art education: Students' justifications of a contestable educational choice
How is art education valued in society? In Swedish public discourse the value of educational trajectories is often equated with their usefulness for employability. With competitive winner-takes-all labour markets for artists, art education is largely perceived as a worthless credential and form of education. But what kinds of worth does art education have among students themselves? This article draws on the approach of pragmatic sociology and ind…
In the Shadow of the First Big Break: The Existential Dimension of Aspiring Writers’ Careers
There are more aspiring artists than available positions for artists in artistic labor markets. For fiction writers, the publication of a first book often means getting the first big break in their literary career and entering the literary world as a published author. However, few writers succeed in their aspiration to become published. This article draws on interviews with 59 writers in Sweden, to explore the tension resulting from the passing …
Subordination and Legitimation of Self-Publishing: Shifting the Basis for Evaluation of Cultural Goods
A do-it-yourself culture and amateur production are significant features of creative industries. Self-publishing is an eloquent expression of these features. Self-publishers invest in and make decisions to publish their creative goods without the involvement of an established and external production company or publishing house. In creative industries, claims are made about the inferior quality of self-published works, creating a stigma for self-p…
Making the Discovery: The Creativity of Selecting Fiction Manuscripts from the Slush Pile
Gatekeeping appears central to creative industries. To better understand gatekeeping, this article introduces a distinction between discovering and justifying the selection of cultural goods. Most research deals with legitimation and justifications for selecting cultural goods. This article draws on American pragmatism to elucidate gatekeepers' discovery of cultural goods under conditions of uncertainty and abundance. The article focuses on the d…
Aspiring writers and appraisal devices under market uncertainty
Aspiring artists are uncertain about how their work's quality will be evaluated by gatekeepers on artistic markets. Learning to evaluate the quality of one's work and its prospects on the artistic market is central to artistic careers, yet often overlooked in research. An analysis of 47 interviews with aspiring writers in Sweden shows that they use what in this article is coined appraisal devices to deal with this market uncertainty. Appraisal de…
Handling Rejection as Failure: Aspiring Writers Getting the Rejection Slip
Included in the definition of being an aspiring person is the risk of failure. Aspiring fiction writers are no exception. This article shows that the role of aspiring fiction writer involves managing three issues: the hope of being published, rejection by a publisher, and the perception of the rejection as a failure. Drawing on 47 interviews with fiction writers who have attempted to become first-time writers, the analysis shows that aspiring wri…
Aspiring writers and appraisal devices under market uncertainty
Aspiring artists are uncertain about how their work's quality will be evaluated by gatekeepers on artistic markets. Learning to evaluate the quality of one's work and its prospects on the artistic market is central to artistic careers, yet often overlooked in research. An analysis of 47 interviews with aspiring writers in Sweden shows that they use what in this article is coined appraisal devices to deal with this market uncertainty. Appraisal de…
The Curse of the Difficult Second Book: Continuation and Discontinuation in Early Literary Careers
Among artists who have made their debut, a minority will become credited a second time in their career. This article investigates why some fiction authors continue publishing books while others do not. The study tracks all 1479 novelists, who published their first book between 2001 and 2010 in Sweden, including their literary activities and the literary reception of the book and data on any second book published within eight years after the first…
Making the Discovery: The Creativity of Selecting Fiction Manuscripts from the Slush Pile
Gatekeeping appears central to creative industries. To better understand gatekeeping, this article introduces a distinction between discovering and justifying the selection of cultural goods. Most research deals with legitimation and justifications for selecting cultural goods. This article draws on American pragmatism to elucidate gatekeepers' discovery of cultural goods under conditions of uncertainty and abundance. The article focuses on the d…
Continuing in a creative career: Claiming an artistic identity and aligning trajectories among early career novelists
Most artists who venture into an artistic career discontinue after their debut work. This article contributes to the understanding of early artistic career discontinuation and continuation by drawing on 53 mainly longitudinal interviews with early-career Swedish novelists. The article develops interactionist theories of careers and social worlds, and suggests that continuation of literary careers depends on realizing an artistic identity and the …
Subordination and Legitimation of Self-Publishing: Shifting the Basis for Evaluation of Cultural Goods
A do-it-yourself culture and amateur production are significant features of creative industries. Self-publishing is an eloquent expression of these features. Self-publishers invest in and make decisions to publish their creative goods without the involvement of an established and external production company or publishing house. In creative industries, claims are made about the inferior quality of self-published works, creating a stigma for self-p…
The worth of art education: Students' justifications of a contestable educational choice
How is art education valued in society? In Swedish public discourse the value of educational trajectories is often equated with their usefulness for employability. With competitive winner-takes-all labour markets for artists, art education is largely perceived as a worthless credential and form of education. But what kinds of worth does art education have among students themselves? This article draws on the approach of pragmatic sociology and ind…
Splendid isolation: Managing time and making culture among novelists during the pandemic
While many public performances of culture were shut down during much of the pandemic, the homes of many artists became prominent places for making culture. In particular, the pandemic created a rift in the temporal and spatial organization of work and leisure, affecting time management. This article turns to the creative lives of 32 novelists in Sweden who were interviewed online over video in 2020 and 2021. Using the example of these authors, th…
In the Shadow of the First Big Break: The Existential Dimension of Aspiring Writers’ Careers
There are more aspiring artists than available positions for artists in artistic labor markets. For fiction writers, the publication of a first book often means getting the first big break in their literary career and entering the literary world as a published author. However, few writers succeed in their aspiration to become published. This article draws on interviews with 59 writers in Sweden, to explore the tension resulting from the passing …
Handling Rejection as Failure: Aspiring Writers Getting the Rejection Slip
Included in the definition of being an aspiring person is the risk of failure. Aspiring fiction writers are no exception. This article shows that the role of aspiring fiction writer involves managing three issues: the hope of being published, rejection by a publisher, and the perception of the rejection as a failure. Drawing on 47 interviews with fiction writers who have attempted to become first-time writers, the analysis shows that aspiring wri…
Making the Discovery: The Creativity of Selecting Fiction Manuscripts from the Slush Pile
Gatekeeping appears central to creative industries. To better understand gatekeeping, this article introduces a distinction between discovering and justifying the selection of cultural goods. Most research deals with legitimation and justifications for selecting cultural goods. This article draws on American pragmatism to elucidate gatekeepers' discovery of cultural goods under conditions of uncertainty and abundance. The article focuses on the d…
Aspiring writers and appraisal devices under market uncertainty
Aspiring artists are uncertain about how their work's quality will be evaluated by gatekeepers on artistic markets. Learning to evaluate the quality of one's work and its prospects on the artistic market is central to artistic careers, yet often overlooked in research. An analysis of 47 interviews with aspiring writers in Sweden shows that they use what in this article is coined appraisal devices to deal with this market uncertainty. Appraisal de…
In the Shadow of the First Big Break: The Existential Dimension of Aspiring Writers’ Careers
There are more aspiring artists than available positions for artists in artistic labor markets. For fiction writers, the publication of a first book often means getting the first big break in their literary career and entering the literary world as a published author. However, few writers succeed in their aspiration to become published. This article draws on interviews with 59 writers in Sweden, to explore the tension resulting from the passing …
Subordination and Legitimation of Self-Publishing: Shifting the Basis for Evaluation of Cultural Goods
A do-it-yourself culture and amateur production are significant features of creative industries. Self-publishing is an eloquent expression of these features. Self-publishers invest in and make decisions to publish their creative goods without the involvement of an established and external production company or publishing house. In creative industries, claims are made about the inferior quality of self-published works, creating a stigma for self-p…
The worth of art education: Students' justifications of a contestable educational choice
How is art education valued in society? In Swedish public discourse the value of educational trajectories is often equated with their usefulness for employability. With competitive winner-takes-all labour markets for artists, art education is largely perceived as a worthless credential and form of education. But what kinds of worth does art education have among students themselves? This article draws on the approach of pragmatic sociology and ind…
To Review a Book Is to Take a Risk: Looking at Book Reviewing from Inside the Critics’ Circle
Arrival to a fictional total institution: The Swedish folk high school as a liminal space in literature
Arrivals have an unexplored significance as a phenomenon in sociology. This article studies depictions of arrivals to art education courses at Swedish folk high schools in fiction. These arrivals are liminal transitions between two states, warranting personal change, either being the solution to a previous problem or creating a problem (to be solved). Many spaces in society have lost their status as total institutions physically and symbolically …
Value of Art Education: Cultural Engagements at the Swedish Folk High Schools
The Curse of the Difficult Second Book: Continuation and Discontinuation in Early Literary Careers
Among artists who have made their debut, a minority will become credited a second time in their career. This article investigates why some fiction authors continue publishing books while others do not. The study tracks all 1479 novelists, who published their first book between 2001 and 2010 in Sweden, including their literary activities and the literary reception of the book and data on any second book published within eight years after the first…
Creative Visions in New York City's Contemporary Art Scene
The Value of Art Education: Cultural Engagements at the Swedish Folk High Schools
Resonant Reviews: Experiencing Accurate Readings and Indicators of Literary Accomplishment Among Reviewed Novelists
Artists both desire and dread reviews of their work by media critics. This article draws upon 66 interviews with Swedish novelists in order to examine their experiences of being publicly reviewed. A ‘successful’ reception creates resonant experiences that can be examined on two levels. On the level of interpersonal responsiveness, the authors’ longing to be genuinely understood through the engagement of others with their work is occasionally reci…
Continuing in a creative career: Claiming an artistic identity and aligning trajectories among early career novelists
Most artists who venture into an artistic career discontinue after their debut work. This article contributes to the understanding of early artistic career discontinuation and continuation by drawing on 53 mainly longitudinal interviews with early-career Swedish novelists. The article develops interactionist theories of careers and social worlds, and suggests that continuation of literary careers depends on realizing an artistic identity and the …
Enforced freedoms: Testing art students’ artistic engagements in a folk high school
Drawing on convention theory and sociology of critique, this article examines how teachers at a Swedish folk high school coordinate students’ activities through tests. Through ethnographic descriptions of exercises, assignments, presentations, and exhibitions that test students’ engagement, it is shown how the teachers seek to depart from the standardized assessment procedure associated with formalized schooling. More specifically, the teachers’ …
Splendid isolation: Managing time and making culture among novelists during the pandemic
While many public performances of culture were shut down during much of the pandemic, the homes of many artists became prominent places for making culture. In particular, the pandemic created a rift in the temporal and spatial organization of work and leisure, affecting time management. This article turns to the creative lives of 32 novelists in Sweden who were interviewed online over video in 2020 and 2021. Using the example of these authors, th…
Framing New Art: Performances by the Tribe of Avant-Garde
Performance art is a genre in which artists use their bodies as a medium of expression to create physical presence. Performances revolve around the ambition to create something that transcends existing frames of what is seen as art; its raison d'être is novelty and change. But how is new art established? This article empirically addresses this question by studying performance artists who take part in performance art festivals organized around the…
Promoting Nordicness through prizes: Regional soft power in speeches at the Nordic Council Prizes award ceremonies (1962–2012)
Recent geopolitical developments have placed Nordic cooperation on the agenda. As an important institution of Nordic cooperation, the Nordic Council has historically been outperformed by the EU and NATO in matters of hard power (e.g. economic and military cooperation), and has instead prioritized influence through soft power (e.g. cultural diplomacy). The article demonstrates how the Nordic Council, through what we call regional soft power, promo…
The conservative revolution revisited: The blending of art and commerce in four Western publishing fields
Conducts a comparative analysis of contemporary publishing fields in France, Germany, Sweden, and the United States. • Reveals the oligopolistic structure of publishing fields in which media corporations monopolize access to the mass market and marginalize independent publishers into niche markets. • Documents the blending of artistic and commercial editorial strategies at the poles of restricted production and mass production. The publishing ind…
Sociology (12 works) · Art (11 works) · Cultural Industries and Urban Development (10 works) · Aesthetics (8 works) · Social and Cultural Dynamics (8 works) · Political science (6 works) · Psychology (6 works) · Law (5 works) · Creativity in Education and Neuroscience (4 works) · Epistemology (4 works)