Opinion & reviews

Editorials, critical reviews, analyses, commentaries, and viewpoints on the contemporary art world.

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Le masque du politique: la biographie romanesque comme nouveau genre médiatique opinion-review
Un nouveau genre médiatique émerge entre le débat télévisé classique et les émissions où les politiciens montrent leur visage humain : la biographie romanesque. Ce format hybride…
The Collapse of Critical Thought in Literary Journals opinion-review
A critical essay published in artpress argues that literary journals, once bastions of resistance, have succumbed to market forces and personal promotion. The author contends that…
Eija-Liisa Ahtila: Emotion, Secret, Present opinion-review
The work of Finnish artist Eija-Liisa Ahtila is examined in an article from artpress, November 2000. The text argues that her pieces do not present 'exposed time' or 'spatialized…
Literature's Guilty Plea: Exploiting Reality for Sales opinion-review
An article in artpress examines the ethical stance of contemporary literature, arguing that writers exploit reality and the right to say everything, as scandal becomes a sales…
The Quarrel of Cinematic Apparatuses opinion-review
The specific apparatus of cinema is under siege from all surrounding devices, confronted as it is by filmmakers drawn to installation, artists drawing material from within it,…
RussianImpostureMasterclass Pioneers Conceptual Theater with Sorokin and Gogol Adaptations opinion-review
The RussianImpostureMasterclass, led by Zhak (Vadim Zhakevich), positions itself as Russia's first concept theater. The group's work explores linguistic deconstruction and visual…
Love in the Age of Programming opinion-review
The article examines how television series function as machines for decoding sentimental and sexual life. It argues that the most successful series are built on a solid system:…
Bloomberg's World: TV and Internet as Information Transfer opinion-review
A 2000 article in artpress titled "Le monde de Bloomberg" presents a critical perspective on television and the internet, describing them as operating within the same field of…
Richon, Männikkö, Bazin: Allegory vs Authenticity in Photography opinion-review
A critical comparison of photographic approaches is drawn between Olivier Richon's staged, allegorical work and the documentary authenticity pursued by Esko Männikkö and Patrick…
Raisonnement analogique et imaginaire numérique opinion-review
In an era of multiplying transversal attempts, the network society does not abolish boundaries between people but redistributes them, with new technology practices remaining the…
Kowalski's Studio and Poland's Post-1989 Art Scene: Althamer, Kozyra, Żmijewski opinion-review
After Poland's political shift in 1989, the art landscape became diverse, with notable activity in cities such as Gdańsk, Wrocław, Poznań, Kraków, and Warsaw. At the Warsaw Fine…
The Promise of Theater: An Artpress Reflection opinion-review
A July 2000 article in Artpress reflects on the concept of theatrical promise, arguing that the anticipation of theater often surpasses its actual performance. The piece suggests…
Vila-Matas champions curiosity in French literature opinion-review
In a critique of contemporary French literature, writer Enrique Vila-Matas argues that its poverty stems from a refusal to look beyond itself. He champions curiosity as a source…
Jo Anna Isaak Critiques Museum Power Structures and Feminist Art History in ARTMargins Interview opinion-review
In a 2000 conversation with Martina Pachmanová for ARTMargins Online, curator Jo Anna Isaak critiques prominent American art institutions, labeling MoMA as "playpens for the rich"…
Three Books Challenge Ascetic Ideals: Meslier, Onfray, Staël opinion-review
A review in artpress discusses three books that collectively oppose ascetic ideals: 'Mémoire' by J. Meslier, 'Théories du corps amoureux. Pour une érotique solaire' by M. Onfray,…
Russian Art's 1990s Struggle: Hedonism, Survival, and Post-Critical Shifts opinion-review
In the 1990s, Russian art encountered significant obstacles, as financial limitations caused most initiatives to collapse within two years. Funding from the state or Western…
French State's Duty to Memorialize 'Primitive' Art opinion-review
A 2000 article in artpress argues that opening a museum dedicated to 'exotic, primitive, or first' art is a political and national issue, as France lags in its duty of memory. The…
Agnes Kamondy's 1993 Nirvania Performance Recasts Hungarian Underground Rock Through Feminine Lens opinion-review
In 1993, Agnes Kamondy debuted her work, Songs from Nirvania, which reimagined iconic Hungarian underground rock tracks from the 1980s. As a seasoned figure in the post-1968…
Austrian Far-Right Government Prompts Art World Debate on Political Vigilance opinion-review
In 2000, the far-right Freedom Party entered Austria's government, sparking debate within the art world about how to respond. Despite initial calls for a radical stance and…
Online commerce as a repressive tool against artists and free expression opinion-review
The article argues that while art and culture have always troubled political power, the rise of online commerce has become another means of repression against artists and free…
Flânerie and Multi-Screen Installations opinion-review
The concept of flânerie is central to multi-screen video installations, which allow viewers to move through space and generate their own narratives, breaking away from the fixed…
Czech Women Artists Politicize Privacy in Post-Communist Era opinion-review
Martina Pachmanová investigates the integration of personal and political realms by Czech women artists since the 1990s, as they confront phallocentric norms. Her study highlights…
Male Body Art in East Central Europe: National Identity vs. Identity Politics opinion-review
Since the 1960s, male body art in East Central Europe, created by artists such as Tibor Hajas, Via Lewandovsky, and Petr Tembera, frequently upheld conventional dualities. In…
Kosovo conflict images as liquid mercury: crisis of belief opinion-review
The article examines how news images of the Kosovo conflict have become extremely malleable and visually heterogeneous, causing a crisis of belief in the link between image and…
Photography's Role in the Age of Continuous Information opinion-review
Since photography lost its monopoly as the primary mass document and sole reference in the image world, it has been forced to adapt its practices and societal role. Following bans…
Critical Review of Margarita Tupitsyn's 'The Soviet Photograph, 1924-1937' Highlights Scholarly Shortcomings opinion-review
A 1999 review by Erika Wolf critiques Margarita Tupitsyn's 1996 book 'The Soviet Photograph, 1924-1937', published by Yale University Press. Wolf argues the work fails to deliver…
Cuban art's political reductionism challenged by Cristina Vives opinion-review
Cristina Vives criticizes the tendency of foreign visitors to perceive Cuba's scarcity as folklore and Havana's ruin as a new aesthetic. She argues that Cuban artists of the 1990s…
Debate on Nihilism in Contemporary French Novels opinion-review
In response to Philippe Forest's text 'Le roman, le rien' published in art press issue 244, Guy Scarpetta continues the debate on nihilism in the contemporary novel. He argues…
Jocelyne Alloucherie, Jacqueline Salmon, Jean-Claude Bélégou: Architectures intimes opinion-review
The article 'Architectures intimes' reviews three artists' photographic explorations of urban architecture. Jocelyne Alloucherie's work 'Aujourd'hui la nuit' examines…
Vladimir Paperny Analyzes Russian Architecture's Dualistic Tensions Between Ornament and Asceticism opinion-review
In his 1999 essay, Vladimir Paperny examines the dualistic nature of Russian architecture, highlighting a "bulimic" desire for ornamentation contrasted with an "anorexic" aversion…
Catherine Breillat and the New Wave of Female Filmmakers opinion-review
The article argues that while earlier female filmmakers like Nicole Vedres, Agnès Varda, and Maya Deren infused their work with feminine themes of prohibition, dependency, and…
Philippe Sollers revisits his 1999 critique of France in artpress opinion-review
In a 1999 article for artpress, Philippe Sollers reflects on his earlier piece 'La France moisie' published in Le Monde in January 1999. He reaffirms his views, drawing on…
Marie Redonnet critiques Houellebecq's postmodern barbarism opinion-review
In a 1999 article for artpress, Marie Redonnet analyzes Michel Houellebecq's novel "Les Particules Élémentaires," arguing that it reveals a traditional conception of literature…
Cold War Art Rivalry and Post-Soviet Memory Through Materiality opinion-review
Cold War ideological battles framed Soviet art as collective realism versus Western individualism, with Yuri Pimenov's 1964 Venice Biennale review contrasting 'Art of Life' with…
French musicians demand clarity on 'contemporary music' terminology opinion-review
On October 8, 1998, the collective Musique and the Syndicat national des auteurs et des compositeurs sent a letter to the French Minister of Culture demanding a terminological…
1998 Hungarian Experimental Films 'Tükrözõdések' and 'Presszo' Explore Memory and Absurdity opinion-review
In 1998, two Hungarian films offered distinct cinematic perspectives. 'Tükrözõdések' (Mirrorings), directed by Istvan Darday and Gyorgyi Szalai, presents an experimental narrative…
Berlin Theater Festival Director Calls for Radical Renewal opinion-review
Torsten Mass, artistic director of the Berlin Theater Festival, has published a manifesto arguing that institutions created by previous generations no longer serve today's youth.…
French Intellectuals Debate the Myth of 'Groupthink' opinion-review
A 1998 article in artpress questions the widespread use of the term 'pensée unique' (groupthink) by French intellectuals and far-right movements. The author observes that young…
1990s Photography: Figures of Disenchantment opinion-review
A 1998 analysis in artpress examines the paradoxes of 1990s photography: unprecedented institutional recognition coexists with a narrow focus on consensual works. The decade's…
Austrian State Retreats from Theatre Patronage opinion-review
Austrian theatre policy favors court-style and festival-oriented institutions, leaving non-institutional 'third theatre' unsupported both during post-war cultural restoration and…

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