The Lost Art of Writing About Art
THE ALPHA OMEGA ARTS
By TAHLIB
As major dailies disappear and journalism dedicated to the Arts declines, many of us are looking backward for the future of Arts journalism. Last week, I came across a 2008 piece by Eric Gibson of The Wall Street Journal entitled "The Lost Art of Writing About Art" where he argued "Once upon a time," art writing was accessible to all, but today much of it is "drivel." Another perspective came this week from my college professor Ken Stevens who shared his praise for E.B. Radcliffe, the Arts editor for The Cincinnati Enquirer (1938-1969), who "emphasized the need to get something in every section of a paper, front page, city, sports, obits." I prefer Religious Arts writing that ignores both the philosophy and aesthetics approaches, and instead follows the lead of abstract painter Mark Rothko, who once said he painted to express "basic human emotions."
By TAHLIB
As major dailies disappear and journalism dedicated to the Arts declines, many of us are looking backward for the future of Arts journalism. Last week, I came across a 2008 piece by Eric Gibson of The Wall Street Journal entitled "The Lost Art of Writing About Art" where he argued "Once upon a time," art writing was accessible to all, but today much of it is "drivel." Another perspective came this week from my college professor Ken Stevens who shared his praise for E.B. Radcliffe, the Arts editor for The Cincinnati Enquirer (1938-1969), who "emphasized the need to get something in every section of a paper, front page, city, sports, obits." I prefer Religious Arts writing that ignores both the philosophy and aesthetics approaches, and instead follows the lead of abstract painter Mark Rothko, who once said he painted to express "basic human emotions."