This collection investigates how various institutional frameworks have historically constructed and continue to define the discipline of art history. Elizabeth Mansfield, a scholar of art history and theory, curates a series of essays that analyze the structural foundations of the field since the nineteenth century. By examining the intersection of art history with museums, universities, and legal entities, the contributors argue that the discipline is not an objective study but a product of institutional power and discourse.

Experts recognize this text as a significant contribution to the historiography of art history, particularly for its focus on the sociology of the discipline. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, making it a foundational resource for graduate-level research in art theory and institutional critique.