Art Museum -- Western Modern Art Criticism

Author: Jean-Luc Chalamet
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2005-03-01
Features: After the disappearance of international avant-garde art, we have participated in the final stage of postmodernism, which, under various banners, combines with subtle conservatism, even some unequivocal reactionary choices. As Jürgen Habermas pointed out: postmodernism is merely a slogan that allows for covertly preserving the reactionary heritage opposed by cultural modernization since the 19th century. Therefore, there is no need to revive the evil doctrines of reactionary forces, to promote the superiority of "craftsmanship" alongside them, and to harbor hidden intentions to undermine the legacy of Cézanne's descendants, reconstructing 19th-century academicism through various embellishments and exaggerations. After experiencing the skeptical interpretations of modern and postmodernism, it is normal to doubt the trend of reconstructing premodernism. Neither premodernism nor postmodernism, but rather the so-called "contemporary" is neomodernism. Those artists who accept (or continue to accept) neomodernism indeed view the past through the lens of "creative freedom." For the "new" contemporary, each of its contemporaries is unique and "new," while "modernity" has a long history both before and after us. True modernists should always fight for their existence, and those who seek to re-establish the carriers of tradition must first attempt to understand these modern artists before revisiting their studies with clarity. Clearly, the history of Western art criticism needs to undertake this attempt.