Unflattering reviews of art shows have been around since the first critic bimbled out of a cave and scratched a single star on a piece of slate, “Woolly mammoths… That’s so last Ice Age.”
It may have something to do with the fact that verbal people inhabit a different universe to visual types. Then again, it may have something to do with visual people having egos as fragile and sensitive as eyeballs, and verbals who would turn their mother over to the Stasi if they could shape a well turned phrase out of the situation.
Take William Morris. He was part of the world’s first artist collective. But he was not only a painter and poet, he also designed books and type-faces, he founded the Arts and Crafts movement, he translated Icelandic Sagas, illuminated manuscripts, found the society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, was a socialist orator, a dyer, and a designer of, amongst other things, church interiors, murals, furniture, jewellery, glass, wallpaper, carpets, tapestries, printed materials, and stained-glass windows:
Of course we all know that Morris was a wonderful all-round man; but the act of walking round him has always tired me.
Two dozen words from Max Beerbohm and Morris is finished for me.
I was thinking about this after I was accused of “snide comments” about an art show at a venue I have a small, unpaid, involvement with.
@channelfur: @philkirby maybe wait till the paying customers have left Temple Works before starting with the snide comments. Just a thought
I really agree I was not s sufficiently reverential concerning the artistic content of said exhibition. But then I am not paid to blow smoke up their arses. I was just a punter trying to bring attention to the exhibition (I actually used the word “fantastic” in relation to one of the pieces) and if I’d wanted to be snide I would have mentioned this…
I shall not say what this “art” reminded me of.
But make up your own mind. The exhibition is on tomorrow, 12 till 4. Tell them I sent you. And whatever you do, don’t mention the draught…
Hey Phil, Maybe you should take note of your own site instructions and try to ‘be nice’. What I was pointing out to you in my tweet this afternoon was that if you want to rent out an art space then it doesn’t make good business sense to make snarky comments about the artwork of the people renting the space off you, especially while they’re still in there. My old phone couldn’t really keep up with the barrage of contradictory & ranty tweets you sent in my direction. First you said the remarks were jokey and offhand, aimed at friends, a few minutes later they were apparently designed to be challenging the notion of ‘what is art’ – make your mind up…The reality is that you were being a little bit snarky, you still are and tbh it’s you that looks mean spirited with this article. Particularly when you decide to take it out on the young artist who’s work you’ve pictured above. I was the one that took issue with you over your comments. I’m not young and I’m confident about my work in this show so maybe you’d have been better off sticking the photo of my alien / clanger as you called it up there. I’m not particularly sensitive about my work, whatever you may think, and if you’d read my initial comments rather than just rattling off angry responses then maybe you’d have understood that I was defending the show and the young, recent graduate who worked hard to put it together. Also noted your comment on twitter re “hating entitled art students”. Hoping that stems from some other issue with artists that you have today because that comment really isn’t relevant in the context of this. In the meantime I’m sorry I’ve upset you so much and respectfully ask you to think about removing the nastier final section of the above piece.
for reference here are a selection of @philkirby tweets relating to the above:
“@philkirby Christ, I Fucking despise, loathe and abhor entitled middle class art students https://theculturevulture.co.uk/speakerscorner/snide-comments/ …”
@philkirby “No middle class entitled art student was hurt during that last tweet… Sadly.”
There were no art students in the exhibition, middle class, entitled or otherwise. I’m 48 years old and left college decades ago. I’m the only artist in the exhibition who’s challenged your comments so you are obviously using this as an excuse to spew out your own ignorant prejudices against young artists.
@philkirby “@SimonMagus @culturevultures I genuinely don’t get why they think the rest of us have to treat them with reverence. Or pay a wage.”
@philkirby “@SimonMagus @culturevultures it ain’t a fucking job.”
Nobody was asking for reverence and nobody was getting paid or asking to get paid. Most exhibitions cost the artists – I’m surprised you don’t know already that. Most artists earn less than minimum wage and most actually work in other jobs to support their art. But I don’t see why you think artists are somehow less legitimate than writers. You claim to be paid for your writing, allbeit “peanuts”. If you really believe people in the arts don’t deserve paying then maybe you should think about writing for something other than an arts website.
@philkirby “@EmmaMBearman @junrussell I do a lot for free. But when they take the piss & get arsy telling me off for not doing enough they can fuck off.”
Part of working in the arts is doing stuff for free. I worked in the background running arts spaces for many, many years and it’s often a thankless task. I would happily have invigilated this show when I could but was told that it was already sorted. I didn’t realise that you had spent any time on it and certainly if people had realised how venomously you felt I’m sure other arrangements would have been made.
I have been less than gracious in the past towards Morwenna Catt, specifically regarding her Shipley Sheep piece (though to be fair – as she pointed out – it was on behalf of the people of Shipley who had contributed to the work rather than of herself that she felt aggrieved). When it comes to creativity, I am quite without talent and try to compensate for this lack by contributing to the audience for creative people (artists, musicians, writers etc). I have never been an especially acute critic either (preferring appreciation and interpretation to criticism) but when I do sometimes allow myself to be negative, it tends to get horribly mixed up with discourtesy. I suppose that what an artist can reasonably expect from a critic is that he/she be informed and informative rather than ignorant and impolite, be balanced rather than merely intemperate. Shortly after my article on the Shipley Market Place appeared here, I saw some of Morwenna’s textile sculptures at the Art Parade during the 2015 Saltaire Art Trail which I thoroughly enjoyed, full of wit and craft. I was just on the point of going up to her and confessing my earlier gracelessness before complimenting her on the pieces on show when she became inundated with visitors and the moment was lost.
On the subject of art students, they are my day job though I leave their artistic development to Morwenna Catt’s colleagues. I am not sure that students (of any subject, not just art, and middle class or otherwise) aren’t entitled (if only for three brief years) to be just a little bit entitled. They’ve worked hard to gain places as students and most of them will spend the forty five years after graduation working hard to earn a living (and pay back the loan). For goodness’ sake, let them indulge for a bit, enjoy some freedom to experiment with the fun, the outrageous, the radical, the revolutionary, the downright daft, and – occasionally – with stuff that, once developed, enhances our lives and even shoves the world forward an incremental fraction. Most of them will more than repay our indulgence.
Thanks for that Walter. I really appreciate your comments and agree re students. People who had the chance of a grant funded education should be more tolerant of today’s young people – they’re treated abysmally now, students or not.
I’ve spoken with the organiser and some of the artists of this exhibition and offered my apologies for anything Temple Works might have been implicated in in terms of offense. As they all know, I supported the show fully, and it was my decision to hold it at Temple Works.
The Guild Exhibition was an inspired show – building on a saved, wonderful banner – up to and around various pieces of wit, wonder and yes, occasional head-scratching! And curated very ably by one of those recent, very young “entitled” art graduates, Sarah-Joy Ford. The sheep at Shipley predates my watch in Leeds so I can’t comment – but Morwenna’s own work as exhibited at Temple Works was an utter delight, and I happen to know Phil thought it was too.
Temple Works is not an art space – it is a mixup of heritage, education, performance, music, film and various artists in residence “making” (noise, mainly) – so we seldom host art exhibitions. It’s too difficult a space. But we aim to treat anyone who comes though our doors if not with the reverence Phil mentions at least with friendliness, an apology for the dirt and cold, and a big thanks for finding us and coming by. All of us of the “unpaid” in the cultural industries need to support each other.
So thanks to all of the Guild artists and those who came by to look and enjoy, and very glad to hear your Guild symposium went well!
Come back soon.
Susan
Hi Phil,
You start this post by appearing to consider how the sensitivity of ‘visuals’ and the sharpness of ‘verbals’ might lead to unfortunate misunderstandings between them. So far, so balanced, though I’m not entirely convinced by the different worlds theory.
But then your example, a lifetime of creative work by visual William Morris “finished” in your eyes, by a clever put-down by verbal Beerbohm shows both where you’re really coming from on this, and the reason why artists do get rather sensitive about how their work is described on public platforms. Reviews can have a devastating effect.
I’m sure you thought that captioning an image of work at the Guild exhibition with “Yes, but is it art?” was no more than harmless Twitter fun; a clever (if far from original) bon mot. Who could take exception to that?
Well, to be honest, if it had been about my work, I would have. I might not have bitten back, or have been unduly devastated, but I’d not have been amused, nor impressed.
It’s not easy having work challenged and criticised, you are absolutely right about that. It can be painful. Nevertheless artists do welcome genuine critical response to their work. You don’t have to be ‘reverential’, but neither Beerbohm’s witticism nor yours act to challenge or engage with the art; they don’t offer an insight, good or bad. They are more banter than critique.
Over a lifetime, I’ve worked in writing as well as in visual art. They are different languages, but translation is not impossible. The nervewracking experience of putting new work out in public view for the first time is exactly the same in both cases and that is something that surely ought to be understood and respected by both.
And, as editor of Culturevulture, you are a bit more than ‘just a punter’ you know.