Spaces for Criticism

• Where is art criticism?
• Investigates new ways and new spaces where art critics may interact with the public, works of art, artists and scholars
• Antennae series: Award Dutch Best Book Designs 2015 by the student panel of judges

Is art criticism losing ground, because of the Internet and art blogs? Do people still consider the authoritative art critic (in newspapers, magazines) as their most important source to filter what they want to see, read and listen to? Most recent discussions revolve around the question ‘what is art criticism?’; this book explores the question: ‘Where is art criticism?’ It looks at new ways and new spaces where art critics may interact with the public, works of art, artists and scholars. This book suggests that criticism has shifted to different places and different stages: a ‘displacement’, not only with regard to media (from journalism to blogs, catalogues, and such) but also a displacement in the geographical and institutional sense.

Contributors: Luc Boltanski, Sabeth Buchmann, Robin Celikates, Hans D. Christ, Ingrid Commandeur, Katy Deepwell, Iris Dressler, Sonja Eismann, John Ellingsworth, Pascal Gielen, Daniel Givens, Max Jorge Hinderer Cruz, Christian Höller, Ines Kleesattel, Vida Knežević, Thijs Lijster, Ivana Marjanović, Suzana Milevska, Dan Perjovschi, Jorinde Seijdel, Ruth Sonderegger, Terre Thaemlitz, Niels Van Tomme

Thijs Lijster is philosopher of arts and culture and coordinator of the research center Arts in Society at the University of Groningen. In 2009, he received the ‘ABG/VN Essay prize’ and in 2010 the Dutch/Flemish ‘Prize for Young Art Criticism’.