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Based on the examination of various different distribution and promotion channels for contemporary creation in the cities of Lyon, Montpellier, Nantes, Le Havre and Rouen, this is a detailed study mapping the current art worlds, which are organised around major divisions: the institutional world and the commercial world, each of which have their intermediary worlds. It identifies different economic models for art based on two distinct areas, on the one hand the artwork economyversus the project economy, and on the other hand innovation versus tradition. The study offers a new method of classifying galleries and shows how artist profiles (training, career, distribution channels, earnings, etc.) vary according to the economic models within which these artists have evolved.