I enjoyed last night's Junto discussion on art criticism in Philadelphia but I'm puzzling over some fundamentals. The larger context went mostly unspoken.
All journalism everywhere is in deep sheep dip right now because print newspapers are dying.
At the same time, everybody's a critic (ahem) thanks to the Interwebs.
Which means we have an overwhelming supply of armchair critique of everything— art, politics, sports, everything— but our supply of profoundly well-informed criticism is perhaps in danger.
But that last is far more an issue for politics (if you can't afford to send stringers to Pakistan, your information is limited) than for art (there are people who choose to invest 20 hours a week in art, on their own dime).
Also, why is this discussion so centered on Philly? Who cares about locality? Okay, it's an important color in the palette, but it's not everything. And other media have already gotten the message that it doesn't matter so much anymore.
Craft artists have moved en masse to
Etsy. They can sell their work, they can
get discovered. And criticism and commentary happen everywhere people care enough about the work. Geography is mostly irrelevant, except insofar as it informs the style of the work itself.
And I'm talking about craft artists who produce functional objects. The need to be in the same room with it before you buy it should be greater, not less, than the need to stand in a gallery with a painting. So why must fine art sales, and fine art criticism, be local? And dependent on the expense of galleries and print publication?
Local artist Katie Henry produces both sewn paintings and bags. To my knowledge her
sewn paintings have sold only on a local basis, while it is completely impossible for her to keep a handmade bag in stock for more than eight seconds. But I suspect this is mostly because her paintings haven't been listed on Etsy (hey, the lady's busy enough as it is).
So why hasn't fine art really arrived on Etsy yet? It could be as simple as a marketing decision on Etsy's part. Perhaps a wise one. But that's just an opportunity for someone else.
