How to Talk About Art With Jerry Saltz
Ever wondered if you were looking at Jackson Pollock? Or just don’t know what to say in response to Rothko? This week, we joined the senior art critic of New York Magazine, Jerry Saltz, to help the less educated of us to learn the art of discussion of the fine arts, as well as to convince us that art criticism is no right and wrong.
Saltz has received a Pulitzer Prize and two National Magazine Awards for his art criticism, and his latest book, How to Become an Artist , comes out in March.
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Highlights from this week’s series
From an interview with Jerry Salz
On the personal nature of art:
All art is subjective. I think you cannot prove that Leonardo da Vinci is a better artist than Norman Rockwell, the illustrator. You cannot do this. I can tell you that Rockwell’s work is great because it tells you exactly what to feel, how to look, how to see exactly, what to look, and in what order. But it never really changes. I have a lot to say, but I cannot prove that one piece of art is better than another.
On why there is no “right” or “wrong” way to talk about art:
I want people to allow themselves to be idiots, to get lost, not to be afraid of being wrong. There is nothing wrong with art. I promise you that. You might think I have a taste of crapola. I might think you have a taste of crapola. Well, this is a pretty interesting conversation … I want people to follow all the crazy ideas in their head. Imagine this is a kaleidoscope. When you see these little triangles and squares bouncing in this little tube, when you [] are a child, you are completely open and construct entire imaginary worlds with one eye, this is how you create architectural structures from really just colored pieces of glass or plastic. And when you look at a piece of art, that’s really all you see.
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