View Two: The Role of the Critic ... by Joan Lowndes.

The role of the art critic for a newspaper is primarily to create the
art audience.

This truth was brought home to me about two years ago when Iwas able
to visit in succession Paris, London and New York. The conservative
Paris press, which rarely reproduces anything except flowers, por-
traits or landscapes, has bred a correspondingly conservative public.
Young artists find their way barred because their work is not reviewed,
and the Musee national d'art moderne on a Sunday afternoon is a
desultory cavern.

In London, apart from the Guardian, newspapers likewise are more apt
to photograph antique vases sold at Sotheby's than contemporary art.
The space they allot to the latter is much less than to books, theatre or
films. It is not surprising to find, as a corollary, that the London
scene is precarious because it is not supported by English collectors.
It must rely on the Americans and the Swiss.

In New York, however, the size and informed curiosity of the art
audience is prodigious. It throngs the galleries and its members are
prepared to buy. The fantastic interest in art evinced by everyone
from cab drivers to Fifth Avenue connoisseurs has been promoted by
the newspapers and by the coverage given in such mass circulation
magazines as Time, Newsweek, Life and Look.

The newspaper critic is in the front line of battle. He must make up
his mind quickly and pass on to readers the news of whether a show is
worth seeing or not. His views affect attendance both in public and
commercial galleries.

More important, he can open the way to greater enjoyment through
greater understanding. Without being pompous, his role is educative
in the widest sense. He must be interested in the flow of ideas -
especially in this age of conceptual art - and able to express them in
clear language accessible to the intelligent laymen.

This exposition without distorting over-simplification challenges all
the skills of the writer. I am often asked if I paint myself. I reply