Temple prof talks on art criticism

Squeezing a semester's worth of lecture material into a 90-minute speech, Temple University Professor Teressa Dolan discussed the history of art criticism at the Institute of Contemporary Art last Wednesday. Dolan's speech, which was presented in conjunction with the current ICA exhibit, "The Devil on the Stairs -- Looking Back on the Eighties," focused on Modernist and Post-Modernist art criticism. Dolan began by saying that art criticism in the 1970s and 1980s focused on the "social, political and economic motivation behind the art." During this time, Modernism and Post-Modernism were no longer the dominant forces in art criticism, as civil rights, anti-war protests and feminism influenced the way art was viewed and critiqued. Dolan then explained the conflict between Modernists and Post-Modernists. She said Modernism is based on purity and exists without outside influence. Post-Modernism, on the other hand, embraces outside forces and references. It "blurs academic disciplines," such as literature, philosophy, sociology and political science, Dolan said. Dolan said the Post-Modern critics stressed the importance of the subject existing in the outside world. They called into question the truth content of the subject and took history to be an unbroken story, worthy of being told in art. They encouraged the artists to "dissect institutions and operations that sustain power," she said. Dolan spent a lot of the lecture discussing art critics such as Clement Greenberg, whom she characterized as the "first American scholar to make art criticism philosophical." Doran next spoke about the influence of feminists on art of the '80s. Dolan said Lucy Lippard, a feminist and devout Marxist, believed that art is ideological and is for political use. She, along with other feminists, sought to make feminism a world view and to overcome class, race, and gender stratification by understanding power. Doran ended her speech by saying that criticism has become more and more difficult to understand. She said criticism needed to be well written and understandable, with less heat and more light. Most of the students at the lecture said they found it very comprehensive and interesting. Graduate School of Fine Arts student Julie Bokat said Dolan covered a lot of material in her speech. "[She related[ an incredible amount of material in a very short period of time."