note to self
Was dozing, and this popped into my head. Luckily pencil and paper were nearby. I think it may actually be my opinion. Or at least an opinion to adopt as my own, or a position to take, until I think about it again. Huzzah!
Good art critics must have not only an observer's knowledge of art, but a maker's knowledge of art. They must have felt the grime of oil paint on their hands, become accustomed to the smell of turps, practiced the techniques of the masters and the modernists or rejected them completely; they must have a sense of delight in and awareness of the textures and tactile nature of art. And when bandying about complex thought experiments and visions of meaning, supported by quotes from dead but respected theoreticians, they must keep in mind language's limited role in the artist's process of synthesising a personal meaning. Nothing can replace this, to me it is more art than a post-event judgement that cannot be anything but ignorant. All language about art is essentially reductive, a pale comparison to the experience of making it.
Good art critics must have not only an observer's knowledge of art, but a maker's knowledge of art. They must have felt the grime of oil paint on their hands, become accustomed to the smell of turps, practiced the techniques of the masters and the modernists or rejected them completely; they must have a sense of delight in and awareness of the textures and tactile nature of art. And when bandying about complex thought experiments and visions of meaning, supported by quotes from dead but respected theoreticians, they must keep in mind language's limited role in the artist's process of synthesising a personal meaning. Nothing can replace this, to me it is more art than a post-event judgement that cannot be anything but ignorant. All language about art is essentially reductive, a pale comparison to the experience of making it.