Photo: Eleanore Lazare
"... At this same party [a] friend introduced the then comparatively young art critic Clement Greenberg... Marianne seemed to be familiar with his writing and said, on shaking hands, "Oh, the fearless Mr. Greenberg."
-- Elizabeth Bishop in Efforts of Affection: A Memoir of Marianne Moore
CLEMENT GREENBERG (1909-1994) was the greatest art critic of the second half of the 20th century and possibly the greatest art critic of all time. All this, of course, is arguable and remains so. He was the most vilified critic since Bernard Berenson -- "Clembashing," as it came to be known, has continued unabated since the late '60s, climaxing in Florence Rubenfeld's biography and Adam Gopnik's savage review of same in the pages of The New Yorker.
This site may not win converts, but it will present the opinions of friends and admirers as well as some of Greenberg's own writing -- in the hope (perhaps faint) that someone will actually read the stuff. I'll add to it as material becomes available.
My thanks for support from Greenberg's many friends and especially from his widow, Janice Van Horne.
-- Terry Fenton
BY GREENBERG
Greenberg on Greenberg a brief autobiography from 1955
On Modernism and the Avant Garde
About (and related to) Greenberg
This seminar was held June 1-3 2007 at Emma Lake, Saskatchewan, sponsored by the Department of Philosophy at the University of Saskatchewan. The papers by teachers and students of aesthetics from Canada and the United States proved to be serious and sympathetic, a far cry from Greenberg's treatment by the art world during his lifetime. Selected papers from the workshop have been published in a special issue of AE: The Canadian Aesthetics Journal devoted to the workshop proceedings.
On Clembashing Bookshelf by Clement Greenberg. the book -- out of print for 50 years!
CLEMENT GREENBERG: A CRITIC'S COLLECTION - The Portland Art Museum acquired Greenberg's art collection, which consists primarily of gifts from artists, and organized a travelling exhibition drawn from it. The museum's "past exhibition" site contains a provocative selection of works from the collection. It's well done although incomplete and not always well selected. A must see.
Please feel free to contact us. Comments, anecdotes, articles, and queries are welcome.
Writing on art
and paintings
by Terry FentonAn electronic journal of plain talk about new art. Includes writing by Darby Bannard and John Link. A rich, well designed site with many links to others. From the Mayor's Doorstep by Piri Halasz. A monthly/bimonthly column of criticism and comment about the current art scene. Neil Marshall 's Journal contains frequent observations on art and the current art world -- sometimes mordant, always illuminating. (Check out his painting while you're there.) webmaster: Terry Fenton
www.sharecom.ca/fenton/
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