Critic Alan Jones, chronicler of Pop Art and Leo Castelli, dies at 78

Alan Jones, the American critic, poet, and curator who chronicled the postwar art scene and wrote a definitive biography of dealer Leo Castelli, has died in Venice. He was 78. Born on the West Coast, Jones began his career in Milan in the early 1970s, working with historic galleries such as Galleria Marconi, Galleria Blu, and Galleria Il Milione. He moved to New York in 1976, just before the consumerist boom of the 1980s, and there encountered emerging artists including Jeff Koons, Cindy Sherman, David Salle, and Julian Schnabel. His most consequential meeting was with Leo Castelli, the legendary gallerist at 420 West Broadway. Jones dedicated a 2007 book to him, 'Leo Castelli. L’italiano che inventò l’arte in America,' published by Castelvecchi, portraying Castelli as a 'Renaissance man' of the 20th century. In 2019, with Laura de Coppet, he published 'I galleristi di New York. Dietro le quinte del mondo dell’arte,' also with Castelvecchi. Jones curated exhibitions at major institutions including Fondation Cartier in Paris, the Guggenheim New York, the Weisman Art Center in Minneapolis, the List Center at Harvard, PS1, the New Museum, the Studio Museum in Harlem, and the Museum for African Art. He spent his final years in Italy and died in Venice. His funeral will be held at Cimitero San Michele, Venice, on Saturday, September 4 at 11 a.m. In 2014, he wrote a tribute to René Ricard for Artribune.