The Easel

Know Your Critics: How to Understand Hal Foster, Godfather of Postmodern Art Theory

Art theory is not everyone’s cup of tea but this piece is worth dipping into. Hal Foster is an influential critic and art historian. He helped articulate the idea of post-modernism – art that is not the beautiful object (Rothko, Pollock) but something that is contingent on its context for meaning (Cindy Sherman). Most recently Foster has railed against at blockbuster exhibitions as “quick, superficial consumption”.