- published: 01 Sep 2014
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An art critic is a person who is specialized in analyzing, interpreting and evaluating art. Their written critiques or reviews contribute to art criticism and they are published in newspapers, magazines, books, exhibition brochures and catalogues and on web sites. Some of today's art critics use art blogs and other online platforms in order to connect with a wider audience and expand debate about art.
Differently from art history, there is not an institutionalized training for art critics (with only few exceptions); art critics come from different backgrounds and they may or may not be university trained. Professional art critics are expected to have a keen eye for art and a thorough knowledge of art history. Typically the art critic views art at exhibitions, galleries, museums or artists' studios and they can be members of the International Association of Art Critics which has national sections. Very rarely art critics earn their living from writing criticism.
The opinions of art critics has the potential to stir debate on art related topics. Due to this the viewpoints of art critics writing for art publications and newspapers adds to public discourse concerning art and culture. Art collectors and patrons often rely on the advice of such critics as a way to enhance their appreciation of the art they are viewing. Many now famous and celebrated artists were not recognized by the art critics of their time, often because their art was in a style not yet understood or favored. Conversely, some critics, have become particularly important helping to explain and promote new art movements — Roger Fry with the Post-Impressionist movement, Lawrence Alloway with Pop Art as examples.
David Pagel is an art critic, educator, curator, dioramatist and bike enthusiast.
Pagel is a regular contributor to the Los Angeles Times and has written nearly 500 articles since 1997. He serves as Chair of the Art Department at Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, California.
Pagel has written several books and essays about artists such as Jim Isermann and Irene Hardwicke Olivieri.
He was the recipient of an Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship in Contemporary Arts Criticism in 1990 and was a Macgeorge Fellow at the University of Melbourne in Australia in 2002.
David Pagel has curated:
Monty Python (sometimes known as The Pythons) were a British surreal comedy group who created the sketch comedy show Monty Python's Flying Circus, that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four seasons. The Python phenomenon developed from the television series into something larger in scope and impact, spawning touring stage shows, films, numerous albums, several books, and a stage musical. The group's influence on comedy has been compared to The Beatles' influence on music.
Broadcast by the BBC between 1969 and 1974, Flying Circus was conceived, written, and performed by its members Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. Loosely structured as a sketch show, but with an innovative stream-of-consciousness approach (aided by Gilliam's animation), it pushed the boundaries of what was acceptable in style and content. A self-contained comedy team responsible for both writing and performing their work, the Pythons had creative control which allowed them to experiment with form and content, discarding rules of television comedy. Their influence on British comedy has been apparent for years, while in North America, it has coloured the work of cult performers from the early editions of Saturday Night Live through to more recent absurdist trends in television comedy. "Pythonesque" has entered the English lexicon as a result.
Actors: Mark Metcalf (actor), Rex Steven Sikes (actor), Christopher Carson Emmons (editor), Christopher Carson Emmons (director), Christopher Carson Emmons (producer), Christopher Carson Emmons (writer), Sam Kozel (actor), Sam Kozel (producer), Dan Bell (actor), Sean Foran (actor), Shawn Jolly (actor), Steve Piper (actor), Tabb Alan Patz (actor), Zach McLain (actor), Drew Britton (actor),
Plot: Prone' tells two parallel stories, one about an artist named Michelle who is offered a huge opportunity for her career but at a questionable cost, the other about a man named Ryan who is madly in love with a girl in his prescription pill support group that doesn't feel the same.
Genres: Drama, Short,Actors: Mark Metcalf (actor), Rex Steven Sikes (actor), Christopher Carson Emmons (editor), Christopher Carson Emmons (director), Christopher Carson Emmons (producer), Christopher Carson Emmons (writer), Sam Kozel (actor), Sam Kozel (producer), Dan Bell (actor), Sean Foran (actor), Shawn Jolly (actor), Steve Piper (actor), Tabb Alan Patz (actor), Zach McLain (actor), Drew Britton (actor),
Plot: Prone' tells two parallel stories, one about an artist named Michelle who is offered a huge opportunity for her career but at a questionable cost, the other about a man named Ryan who is madly in love with a girl in his prescription pill support group that doesn't feel the same.
Genres: Drama, Short,Actors: Evan Boymel (producer), Sonny Burnette (actor), Evan Boymel (actor), Vince Jolivette (actor), Bootsy Collins (actor), Julie Marie Hassett (director), Julie Marie Hassett (actress), Julie Marie Hassett (producer), Julie Marie Hassett (writer), Joseph Ruggieri (producer), David Pittinger (actor), John W. Lawson (actor), Elizabeth Holmes (actress), Elizabeth Holmes (actress), Madalyn Lester (actress),
Plot: JOY What can the perfect cake teach us about love and loss? Have you ever passed someone at the grocery store and wondered what is going on in their life? What can a 1997 Michigan pinot grigio teach us about the unexpected death of a loved one? What's on your grocery list? These questions and more are answered in Joy. When the death of their father doesn't bring sisters closer together, it takes an unexpected journey to make them realize the importance of finding joy in life by living each day to the fullest and giving back. In this feature comedy, these sisters learn about love, loss, and paradise while on a trip to the grocery store.
Keywords: character-name-in-title, one-word-titleActors: Lorielle New (actress), Ariel X. (actress), Christopher DeMaci (actor), Yareli Arizmendi (actress), Jacques Freydont (actor), Anthony Stabley (director), Anthony Stabley (writer), Anthony Stabley (editor), Anthony Stabley (producer), Chance Romero (miscellaneous crew), Sergio Arau (actor), Jason Coleman (actor), Yuu Asakura (actress), Zack Krone (actor), Pilar Padilla (actress),
Genres: Comedy,Actors: Bill Nighy (actor), Corin Redgrave (actor), Daniel Craig (actor), Tessa Ross (producer), Rhys Ifans (actor), Helen McCrory (actress), Samantha Morton (actress), Sara Curran (miscellaneous crew), Susan Lynch (actress), François Ivernel (producer), Jon Duncan (miscellaneous crew), Ben Whishaw (actor), Cameron McCracken (producer), Nicolas Gaster (miscellaneous crew), Nicolas Gaster (editor),
Plot: On a beautiful cloudless day a young couple celebrate their reunion with a picnic. Joe has planned a postcard-perfect afternoon in the English countryside with his partner, Claire. But as Joe and Claire prepare to open a bottle of champagne, their idyll comes to an abrupt end. A hot air balloon drifts into the field, obviously in trouble. The pilot catches his leg in the anchor rope, while the only passenger, a boy, is too scared to jump down. Joe and three other men rush to secure the basket. Just as they secure the balloon, the wind rushes into the field, and at once the rescuers are airborne. Joe manages to drop to the ground, as do most of his companions, but one man is lifted skywards. As Joe, Claire and the other rescuers watch this strangely beautiful sight, they see the man fall to his death. Recalling the day's events at dinner with his friends Robin and Rachel, Joe reveals the impact the accident has had on his battered psyche. Ironically the balloon eventually lands safely, the boy unscathed. But fate has far more unpleasant things in store for Joe. Going to retrieve the body of the fallen man with fellow rescuer Jed Parry, for example, turns out to be a very bad move. Jed feels an instant connection with Joe--one that, as the weeks go by, becomes ever more intense.
Keywords: accident, apology, apple, art-gallery, art-studio, attempted-murder, au-pair, author, autograph, babyActors: Laura Soveral (actress), Alexandra Lencastre (actress), Rita Blanco (actress), Maria João Luís (actress), Rosa Lobato Faria (actress), Isabel de Castro (actress), João Perry (actor), Nuno Melo (actor), Adriano Luz (actor), Canto e Castro (actor), Suzana Borges (actress), José Eduardo (actor), Artur Ramos (actor), João Botelho (writer), Paulo Branco (producer),
Genres: Comedy,Actors: Eric Schaeffer (writer), Eric Schaeffer (director), Ben Stiller (actor), Eric Schaeffer (writer), Eric Schaeffer (producer), Sarah Jessica Parker (actress), Brad Krevoy (producer), Scarlett Johansson (actress), Steven Stabler (producer), David Thornton (actor), James Rebhorn (actor), Bill Sage (actor), Eric Schaeffer (actor), Al Cerullo (miscellaneous crew), Dominic Chianese (actor),
Plot: Joe and Lucy are roommates and best friends. Lucy, whose love life is embarrassingly dull, convinces Joe, who is infatuated with a neighbor he's never met, that if they don't have stable romances within a month, they must jump off the Brooklyn Bridge.
Keywords: artist, best-friend, brooklyn-bridge, character-name-in-title, father-daughter-relationship, human-relationship, independent-film, lingerie-slip, love, new-yorkActors: Gene Evans (actor), Joan Taylor (actress), John J. Flynn (actor), James Taylor (actor), Debra Gordon (actress), Joan Bechtel (writer), Wendy Bowers (actress), Joan Bechtel (actress), Joan Bechtel (actress), Chris Shaw (writer), Chris Shaw (composer), Chris Shaw (actor), Chris Shaw (director), Chris Shaw (editor), Robert Peterson (actor),
Genres: Drama, Sci-Fi,Actors: Brian Aherne (actor), Tom Chatterton (actor), Eddie Borden (actor), Tom Coleman (actor), James Conaty (actor), Ricardo Cortez (actor), Reginald Denny (actor), Ben Erway (actor), Sam Flint (actor), Charles Flynn (actor), Sam Harris (actor), Keith Hitchcock (actor), George Humbert (actor), Jack W. Johnston (actor), Colin Kenny (actor),
Plot: Lovely Nancy seems like the ideal bride to fiancée John Willis... until, just before the ceremony, Willis is approached by Harry Blair, claiming to be Nancy's former husband. The tale Blair unfolds (in a flashback within a flashback within a flashback!) paints Nancy as a kleptomaniac, habitual liar, and perhaps worse. But is Blair telling the truth? And does fate have another surprise in store?
Keywords: 1940s, altar, art-class, art-exhibition, artist, bicycle-accident, birthday-party, cassandra-complex, cheating, dead-fatherActors: Billy Gilbert (actor), Brooks Benedict (actor), Frank Mills (actor), Richard Carlson (actor), Maurice Cass (actor), Dick French (actor), John Dilson (actor), Russell Hicks (actor), Lester Dorr (actor), Keye Luke (actor), Aubrey Mather (actor), Victor Mature (actor), Torben Meyer (actor), Harold Miller (actor), Frank Puglia (actor),
Plot: Perky young Nanette attempts to save the marriage of her uncle and aunt by untangling Uncle Jimmy from several innocent but ensnaring flirtations. Attempting one such unentanglement, Nanette enlists the help of theatrical producer Bill Trainor, who promptly falls in love with her. The same thing happens when artist Tom Gillespie is called on for help. But soon Uncle Jimmy's flirtations become too numerous, and Nanette's romances with Tom and Bill run into trouble. Will Uncle Jimmy's marriage survive, and will Nanette find happiness with Tom, Bill, or somebody else?
Keywords: based-on-stage-musical, character-name-in-title, public-domain