Quoted: Gut on its own is never enough to make a good piece of criticism, but it seems that most critics either don't trust their instincts or they feel the need to explain them away when they write for an audience.

it's true, art criticism has gone pansy. i personally don't mind the occasional "shock jocks" such as saltz and hickey. but unless you're god or oprah don't tell me you're not responsible to back those opinions up. pshaw!

deciphering what richard tuttle means by reality-based art. great article.

Quoted: The major theme in the Tuttle interview centers on the notion that art is the only realm in which we can experience reality in our culture. It seems a dubious assertion, IMO, but let's give the great man a listen:

Quoted: Today, instead of a cultural crisis, we’re facing a paradigm shift. Thanks to the Internet, the monopoly of the elites and the publishing empires they represent are crumbling, and if the blinders imposed by the powers that be haven’t yet been pried off, they have at least, for the moment, been bent back. If you don’t believe in democracy, this is a problem. If you do, then this is could be the dawning of a new golden age.

the brooklyn rail talks with barry hoggard, james wagner, and painternyc about the future of art criticism.

Quoted: Whether you are Minor White or Robert Frank, almost every photograph starts with an act of pure description – a window. But every now and then you catch a glimpse of the photographer’s reflection. The mirror is just another function of the window:

ponderings on photography... dotting for colin. =)