The Past, Present, and Futures of Art Criticism
Kerr Houston, professor of art history, theory and criticism, Maryland Institute College of Art

Since the 1760s, art criticism has played an important role in shaping the arts, and the ideas of critics such as John Ruskin, Charles Baudelaire, Clement Greenberg, and Rosalind Krauss are regularly cited in standard histories of modern art. In recent years, however, the place of art criticism in a broader conversation about the arts has been repeatedly questioned, and many art critics have come to feel that their work is marginal, or even irrelevant. In this talk, Kerr Houston, the author of An Introduction to Art Criticism (2012) and a regular contributor to BmoreArt, will offer a concise history of the genre, discuss the work of some leading active art critics, outline the challenges that face contemporary arts commentary, and consider how art criticism might continue to evolve in the future. The talk will be supported by a visual presentation featuring excerpts from several significant works of criticism and images of a wide range of works of art.

$15 door fee for guests and subscribers