Abstract

DURAN, José María. Contribution to the Theory of Value of Art Based on Marx's Analysis of the Theory of Ground-Rent. Ens. Econ. [online]. 2019, vol.29, n.55, pp.234-249.  Epub Mar 14, 2020. ISSN 0121-117X.  https://doi.org/10.15446/ede.v29n55.79173.

This paper questions the assumption that the differences in artists' incomes can be explained as the result of different innate talents and that Ricardo's theory of differential rent accounts for their economic function. We challenge this assumption with the help of Marx's analysis of ground-rent in capitalism. According to Marx, ground-rent can only be explained in terms of agricultural productivity, not the soil fertility. Following Marx, the differences in artists' income are not the result of innate talents but of the production of value for works of art. We consider the production of value as the product of a social relation represented through a legal concept: intellectual property rights.

JEL: B51; D46; P16; Z11.

Keywords : art; value; substance of value; differential ground-rent; human capital; intellectual property.

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