Featured Essay
The Apostasy of MoMA
Apostasy is a falling away from true faith. The Museum of Modern Art staked its faith in the greatness of modern art. In 1933, Alfred Barr, MoMA’s first director, initiated a series of exhibitions, showcasing Picasso and Matisse, followed by the groundbreaking show “Painting in Paris,” featuring Vincent van Gogh (1935). In 1936, “Cubism... More »
Recent Essays
City of the Soul
Rome has haunted the world’s imagination for centuries. When painters, writers, architects and photographers are confronted with the physical reality of the city, they are often transformed. As “City of the Soul: Rome... More »
A Review of the Culture Wars
A quarter-century has passed since the raging inferno of the American culture wars peaked, during the 1980s—although its embers still glow white hot in the dystopian darkness of today’s arts, civic projects, public... More »
American Dreamland
It’s only a paper moon Sailing over a cardboard sea But it wouldn’t be make-believe If you believed in me. Without your love It’s a honky-tonk parade Without your love It’s a melody played in a penny arcade. It’s a... More »
Printer-friendly version