{"id":1123,"date":"1998-04-30T12:31:13","date_gmt":"1998-04-30T19:31:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/i81.a52.mywebsitetransfer.com\/?p=1123"},"modified":"2010-02-18T11:07:07","modified_gmt":"2010-02-18T18:07:07","slug":"the-interpreters-shaping-american-art-panel-discussion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dactylfoundation.org\/?p=1123","title":{"rendered":"The Interpreters: Shaping American Art, panel discussion"},"content":{"rendered":"

April 30, 1998<\/strong><\/p>\n

Panel Discussion<\/strong>:“The Interpreters: Shaping American Art.”<\/strong> Moderated by Steven Vincent,\u00a0Wall Street Journal, Art & Auction. <\/em>DACTYL asked five writers: Do your essays and reviews reveal or conceal your process of interpretation? As interpreter you shape the way art is perceived: as a self-evident sign or image; as a mysterious code that requires a professional interpretation; or as an “inkblot” in which one may find any meaning one likes. In your opinion, what is the best approach for engaging or creating a serious art audience? Over forty art professionals attended the discussion. Here are some quotes from the panelists:<\/p>\n

Carter Ratcliff, whose books include:\u00a0The Fate of a Gesture: Jackson Pollock and Postwar American Art<\/em> (Farrar, Straus & Giroux),\u00a0Andy Warohl, John Singer Sargent, Pat Steir: Paintings, and Robert Longo, <\/em>and is a regular contributor to\u00a0Art International, Art in America, Artforum, Art & Auction, ARTnews, <\/em>remarked, “The first responsibility of the art writer is simply to keep track of things. The larger purpose is speculation, a specialized kind of mind-reading.” Said Rosie Schaap,\u00a0French NY News, Unmuzzled Ox, <\/em>“When I was young I faced Abstract Expressionist art with the excitement of not knowing how it worked. I was filled with wonder, but this doesn’t move me any longer. Meaning doesn’t matter to me the way it once did. These days I’m against interpretation.” Sarah Schmerler,\u00a0ARTnews, Time Out, <\/em>argued that “Providing multiple readings is a way of inviting the viewer\/reader to contribute her own reading.” Grady T. Turner , Curator of Education New-York Historical Society,\u00a0ARTnews, Flash Art, Art in America,<\/em> ironically noted, “It is necessary to translate the art object into a language that Art History will understand.” And Alexi Worth,\u00a0ARTnews, Art New England, Slate<\/em> pointed out that “Because the image is immediately available people get a false sense that they understand.”<\/p>\n