Marc Abélès

Holder of the Luxury in the age of globalisation chair

Marc Abélès is an anthropologist, Director of studies at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (Chair of Anthropology of Institutions) and Director of CNRS research. Director of the Laboratory of Anthropology of Institutions and Social Organizations (2005-2010) of the Interdisciplinary Institute of Anthropology of Contemporary (2010-2012), of the Franco-Argentine Center of Buenos Aires, (2012-2013). President of Section 38 "Anthropology and comparative study of contemporary societies" of the CNRS (2012-2016).

Research Project

Since his first work on assemblies in a society in Southern Ethiopia, he has pursued research in political anthropology on national and European institutions. More recently, he has been interested in the emergence of new areas of politics by developing an important international research program on the World Trade Organization. As a follow-up to this exploration, his current work focuses on globalization and its consequences on trade and the movement of goods in the field of luxury and contemporary art.

For a global anthropology of luxury: to think of luxury in the context of globalization. The circulation of luxury goods has become a global affair, it has become denser and faster. This project considers the value of luxury, the political stakes and the cultural representations it mobilizes and how it reflects the transformations of capitalism today.