Why is Art Criticism so Complicated?

Banner Image: Douglas Argue, Untitled, 1991-93, oil on canvas.

Hi, I’m William Gustavo Franklin, contributing writer for MPLSART.COM, and today we’ll be talking about the contended subject of art criticism. This article and guide is a bit of opinion, past experiences, and resources I’ve gathered along the way. I hope it catches your attention and becomes somehow useful. I have included a section on art writing and Minnesota at the end, a few mentions of writers and publications that have made an impression on me along the way. 

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I have been inspired by countless essays, debates, and podcast episodes on the subject of art criticism over the years, with opinions ranging from declaring its death, others, its perpetual state of crisis, to its rather undeniable thriving role today. Regardless of any of these views, I have come to accept that humans are at their core evaluators, all part of our self-interpreting animalistic nature. When it comes to art, I fiercely believe that those who have become critics, successfully or not, have done so simply because art matters. 

The practice of art criticism has accompanied art for centuries (sadly dominated by white and male gatekeepers for a long time). It was not a distinctive discipline until the eighteenth century; the more public exhibitions and Salons were happening, the more critics gained a following, and the more the public engaged in debates about the art they liked or disliked. But the era of hegemony and critics celebrated as high priests is ending. 

While criticism has been a foundational part of art journalism, the reporting of facts and news of the art world IS a different enterprise from the analysis and subjective judgment of a work within history or theory. What is most distinctive about art criticism, is its ability to be a catalyst for deeper dialogues that may be out of reach in other forms. 

 

Jerry Saltz at The Broad Art Museum during Vulture Festival LA on Nov. 18, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. 

The term art writer has emerged in recent years as a kind of conciliatory way for bridging advocacy for art with some criticism. While some aspects overlap, the function of the writing is different between the art writer and the art critic; simply put, one is to describe, the other to evaluate. Today, the “art critic in the expanded field” —a term that echoes Rosalind Krauss’s “expanded field” from 1979— describes a contemporary critic that operates beyond traditional or gallery-bound writing, also one that, in particular, is willing to connect wider with the public across social channels, engage with pluralistic views, and learn from the exchange (Jerry Saltz and Aruna D’Souza are good examples of this, sharing their voice and opinions regularly with thousands of people over social media, articles, and through personal appearances). 

In reviewing opinions on the state of art criticism from the last couple of decades, the 2003 essay A Quiet Crisis: Why Don’t Critics Make Judgments Anymore? by American critic Raphael Rubenstein is a good start. In essence, Rubenstein’s preoccupation in this text was with the growing complacency of some critics which impeded them to take risks to defend more deeply their opinions and judgements. Rubenstein was first to pronounce that art reviews were becoming not critical enough. 

The “crisis of criticism” was also noted by critic Ben Davis in an article published in ARTnews in 2009, and later again in a two-part essay published in ARTnet in 2023 titled, Is Art Criticism Today Too Affirmative? That’s the Wrong Question to Be Asking. It was in this essay by Davis that I learned about the Kritic’s Korner, a section featuring short-form and salty reviews of New York Gallery exhibitions based on a scale of one to five stars. Kritic’s Korner is part of The Manhattan Art Review, an independent website founded by Sean Tatol, an art critic based in New York City. His short reviews are often praised for its ability to challenge the status quo and provoke rich discussions on the role of criticism. I became interested in the Kritic’s Korner because it feels like a refreshing intellectual and stimulating voice in art criticism, something I argue is much needed. 

 

Art in the After-Culture: Capitalist Crisis and Cultural Strategy, written by Ben Davis.

Another notable contribution to criticism that I hold dear is that of New Zealand philosopher Denis Dutton (1944-2010). In his book The Art Instinct from 2009, Dutton contends that humans possess universal preferences, one example are landscape paintings depicting savanna-like, resource-rich environments. I believe connecting aesthetics and criticism to a larger understanding of human nature, all the way to biological sciences, is a very important dimension to take into account. Dutton’s theory is based on characteristic features found cross-culturally, elements people would have little trouble identifying as artistic. 

But fondness of art criticism and its strategies does not make one immune to occasionally object it or see its limitations. I have always relied on American cultural critic Susan Sontag (1933-2004) and her 1966 essay “Against Interpretation” to challenge over-intellectualization and artificiality. Sontag argued that one should be able to appreciate art for what it is rather than for what it means. Her a.k.a,‘erotic’ view of art ranked experience as more important than interpretation. 

All in all, I am excited for the evolution of art criticism, in particular, the increasing participation of readers and viewers as critics themselves, as informed debaters in the conversation. It is this phenomenon that has elevated criticism to a genuine form of dialogue. I am also thrilled for the rise of Native American voices in the field; the work of curator Candice Hopkins (Carcross/Tagish First Nation) in emphasizing the importance of letting artists speak for themselves as art spaces globally rush to show more Indigenous art, the shift towards the decolonization of art spaces, and the advancement of indigenous leadership and decolonial education by groups such as Forge Project NY. 

 

Art writing and Minnesota 

I would like to start by mentioning the legendary New Yorker art critic Peter Schjeldah (1942-2022) who was born in Fargo, ND, temporarily attended Carleton College in Northfield, and worked as a reporter in our state before moving to New York in 1964. His accessible and subjective prose continues to inspire many today. 

My first memory of any art spotlighting in the Minnesota media was in Mpls.St.Paul Magazine in the early 90s. The opening of the Weisman Art Museum in 1993 and artist Doug Argue’s famous chicken painting from 1994 are two events that come to mind. In 2016, I encountered INREVIEW, a free printed quarterly publication dedicated to presenting critical responses and engaging extended conversations about art in the Twin Cities. Founded by multimedia artist and educator Chris Larson, and funded by The University of Minnesota Imagine Fund Grant, the publication ran for three years and enlisted an important group of notable contributors. The last issue of INREVIEW was in the Spring 2019, it featured a review of the exhibit Rodrigo Hernández: A Complete Unknown at Midwest Contemporary Art (then at its old location).

Photograph of a printed copy of INREVIEW, a free quarterly publication featuring critical essays and conversations about visual art in the Twin Cities.

Writer and critic Alicia Eler (she/they) began reporting for the Minnesota Star Tribune in 2017. Eler changed the paradigm of local cultural journalism by focusing on emerging artists, feminism, race, and on the impact of digital platforms in traditional art production. A notable piece is Eler's critique of how French writer and photographer Sophie Calle’s 1970s and 1980s work essentially predicted the digital "oversharing”. Read Eler’s conversation on Sophie Calle with Walker Art Center curator Henriette Huldisch here. 

Equally important all these years has been the work of journalist Sheila Regan, now writing for MinnPost’s Artscape. At MinnPost, she gets to cover a variety of art forms and stories in the arts and culture realm. Regan also writes classical music reviews and occasional seasonal guides for the Pioneer Press, and has been published in the Art Newspaper, Hyperallergic, and Bomb. In my opinion, Regan’s writing is of the most accessible out there. In her own words, “I've put thought into how arts writing can reach not just the folks that go to museums, galleries, theaters and clubs on a regular basis, but people that maybe need an entry point.” 

I met journalists Alex Cipolle and Jacob Aloi in 2023 around the time they launched the segment Art Friend for MPR News. The motto of Art Friend hits the nail on the head when it comes to art criticism moving forward: Everyone needs an art friend. Art spaces can feel exclusive and art can be confusing, obtuse, even boring. But, especially with the right context, everyone can be a critic. So let the MPR News arts team be your guide, your Art Friend. 

 

Chef Alan Bergo and MPR News senior arts reporter and critic Alex V. Cipolle look at watercolor paintings of mushrooms by artist Alexander Viazmensky at The Museum of Russian Art in Minneapolis on Dec. 2.Ben Hovland | MPR News.

Also inspiring is the work of local Native American artists, curators, writers, scholars, and museum leaders who have been actively analyzing the intersections of Native aesthetics, history, and settler-colonialism within the arts in our state and beyond. Some of these critical local voices include: Dyani White Hawk (Sičáŋǧu Lakota), Marlena Myles (Spirit Lake Dakota), Angela Two Stars (Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate), and Dr. Kate Bean (Flandreau Santee Sioux Dakota and Muscogee Creek). Check out this great roundtable conversation on artistic practices, supports, and commitments on the occasion of the critically acclaimed Dyani White Hawk exhibition Love Language at the Walker Art Center. 

The 2012 book Mni Sota Makoce: The Land of the Dakota co-authored by Gwen Westerman (Sisseton Wahpeton Dakota) was the first to challenge dominant, Eurocentric narratives by retelling Minnesota's history explicitly from a Dakota perspective. Ever since, the book has become a vital resource for art writers, critics, scholars, and the general public. Mni Sota Makoce: The Land of the Dakota can be accessed for free here (thanks Minitex). 

Last, I am excited for Edgar, the arts and cultural magazine project of writer and former Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art and the Minnesota Artist Exhibition Project Coordinator at Mia Nicole Soukup. Soukup's goal is to turn Edgar's into a quarterly print magazine with criticism and in-depth, long form reporting. “We will cover more than MN, looking at Midwest makers, artists, and creatives in and beyond the region. Eventually, evolve into a brick-and-mortar arts club.” Can’t wait.◼︎ 

See you in two weeks with a new topic. In the meantime, send comments or feedback on this article to: info@mplsart.com

 

William Gustavo Franklin is an educator and an independent art curator who teaches art history, criticism, and theory. He has curated more than a dozen exhibits and served as a panelist reviewing applications for grants and artist-in-residence programs. He is also a native Spanish speaker who loves his language and culture. Website