Hyde, Lewis, 1945- .

Gift : imagination and the erotic life of property / Lewis Hyde. [0394523016 : ] New York : Random House, 1983.
Call#: Van Pelt Library GN449.6 .H93 1983

 

"A work of art seems to be a hardier breed; it can be sold in the market and still emerge a work of art. But if it is true that in the essential commerce of art a gift is carried by the work from the artist to his audience, if I am right to say that where there is no gift there is no art, then it may be possible to destroy a work of art by converting it into a pure commodity. I don't maintain that art can't be bought and sold, but that the gift portion of the work places a constraint upon our merchandising."