The Easel

14th November 2023

Max Beckmann’s Singular Path

Thomas Micchelli | Hyperallergic | 19th October 2023

When WW1 arrived, Beckmann was nearly 30 and facing a creative crisis. Convulsing world events made his “proto-modernist” portraits and landscapes look trivial. His art shifted to focus on social observation. Appalled by Weimar Republic decadence and Italian fascism, he somehow retained an affection for his fellow humans. His realist art in the post-war decade showcased the “private splendours and public horrors” of the unfolding 20th century.

Southern photography at Atlanta’s High Museum

Sammy Dalati | The Magazine Antiques | 9th October 2023

It must take quite a lot of local pride – or optimism – to schedule a photography show about one’s region. The US South is complex – and has many acclaimed photographers – so a “comprehensive” survey of its photography has a lot to cover. Myths abound and not just those peddled by politicians making for, says one critic, “a great mix of documentary and artistry.” And the truth about the South – well, its complicated.

7th November 2023

The Land Carries Our Ancestors: Contemporary Art by Native Americans

Phoebe Farris | Cultural Survival | 4th October 2023

Washington’s National Gallery is having its first show of contemporary native American art in 70 years. So overdue! One challenge to appreciating this work is its radically different ideas of landscape. Says the curator, an acclaimed artist, “a sacred place is everything around us … all six directions. [These] works do not necessarily fit into the mainstream European definition of landscape, with a horizon line and a blue sky.” The linked piece is something of an explainer.

Robert Irwin, pioneer of Light and Space art who designed Getty’s Central Garden, dies at 95

Christopher Knight | LA Times | 25th October 2023

Irwin was a young Los Angeles artist when a study trip to Europe confirmed his lack of interest in art history. Subsequently deciding that “the pure subject of art is human perception”, he became the leading figure in California’s Light and Space movement. Using a wide variety of materials, he created “fastidious” and widely influential site-specific pieces intended to “get people to perceive how they perceive”. Irwin, says this writer “is an eminence of post-war American art.”

Judy Chicago Didn’t Stop at ‘The Dinner Party’

Jillian Steinhauer | Vulture | 17th October 2023

The art world is all the better for Chicago’s long career. Art in 1960’s LA was a man’s game and Chicago’s demands for access weren’t appreciated. Early minimalist works, glossy and in soft colours, were deemed “too feminine”. Now, they are “exhilarating”. However, perhaps her activism distracted her from her art, one critic noting that some works are “clumsy and crass”. The writer seems to agree – “not all of women’s work is about womanhood.”

Older links
Newer links