Art critic Brenson is Arts Institute’s artist in residence

Kate Hewson

The UW–Madison Arts Institute has named respected art critic Michael Brenson as the Interdisciplinary Artist in Residence for fall 2004.

The public is invited to a free symposium on contemporary art criticism, “Criticism, History and Power,” Nov. 11-12, at the Elvehjem Museum of Art. Additional details such as times and room locations are yet to be announced.

Brenson’s residency is sponsored by the Elvehjem Museum of Art and cosponsored by the Department of Art, Department of Art History, Department of Philosophy, and the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Now working as an independent critic in New York, from 1982-91 Brenson wrote about art for the New York Times. A critic who calls attention to pressing artistic and cultural issues, he has written extensively on sculpture, the insularity of the New York art world, and the tension between American artists and society. His analysis of the natures and purposes of art criticism itself has significantly contributed to the contemporary art dialogue.

In addition, Brenson is a teacher, curator and organizer. He taught both curators and artists at Bard College, curated five exhibitions, and organized a national conference on art and culture for The Rockefeller Foundation and panel discussions for the National Gallery of Art and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. He has lectured at numerous museums, given keynote addresses on sculpture, arts policy and public art, and served as visiting scholar at Yale, the University of Texas at Austin and the Getty Research Institute. He is currently the Avery Fellow in Bard College’s Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts.

Brenson will give the keynote lecture for the symposium. He also has invited recognized art critics, artists and curators to participate. Free and open to the public, this symposium will create a forum to discuss aesthetic, cultural and institutional issues in contemporary criticism.

For more information and a full schedule, call 263-2246 or visit www.arts.wisc.edu/artsinstitute/interair.php or www.lvm.wisc.edu.