Johanna Drucker

Ordinarily an academic lecture on art criticism wouldn't be at the top of too many lists of what to do for fun on a Saturday night. But with my art history interested daughter in town off we went to the San Francisco Art Institute to listen to Johanna Drucker discuss aspects of her critique of contemporary art criticism. Drucker's book Sweet Dreams, Contemporary Art and Complicity was the basis of her talk. In it she argues for decoupling art from various frameworks a critic uses to convey purposes and meaning in works, as well as a call for an end to unnecessary obscurity and a reintroduction of aesthetics. Although this post any indicate otherwise the talk was upbeat and positive about newer developments.