Identity (Trans) formation in a creative industry: Ferran Adrià and the rise of Spanish creative cuisine, 1983-2003

Creative fields are characterized by the ongoing coupling and de-coupling of art and business to protect creativity from business routines. In this paper, we study how identity transformation processes and creative field changes interact with the coupling and de-coupling of art and business. In particular, we argue that the interplay between identity transformation and field change generates paradoxes in the actual management of the relationship between artistic and business processes. We describe the transformation of identity and the link to field changes in Spanish cuisine by studying the case of Ferran Adrià, a leading creative chef in the Barcelona area acting as a maverick in the field. By describing the stages of development of Adrià as a leading chef over the last decade, we outline the two following paradoxes: de-coupling creativity and business activities leads to a better coupling of creative ideas with business opportunities, and establishing routines and rigidities unleashes creativity. Grounding the theory in Ferran Adrià's story, we also derive a broad model for the interplay of identity transformation, the coupling and de-coupling of art and business, and field change.