The aim of this paper is to present the ambivalence of perspectives - contrasting narratives - of art and culture as has appeared in the public sphere since the 90’s, in particular in Portugal. The research, published in several papers of work since 1996, was conducted empirically with statistical and documentation analysis, surveys and interviews, and a permanent ethnographic observation of the different arenas, profiles and discourses relating to art and culture. The paper proposes a series of theoretical and methodological lines to understand this context, and the importance of two major concepts – reflexivity and citizenship – to articulate the sociology of art, sociology of culture and sociology of contemporary societies.

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art, culture, ambivalence, reflexivity, citizenship