Janice L Welker-Mills

In 1942 William Schack wrote A critique of art criticism, in which he lamented the lack of astute critics. As he states, “The lyrical critic may provide a cue to the spirit of a painting; the rationalist critic, a cue to its grammar. But in the end, as in the beginning, one must experience art. That is the only understanding of art which has any meaning” (Schack, 1942, p. iii). Consequently, a question, that may be asked is what it is that makes good art criticism. One study by Philipp Strobl (2018) uses a case study of critic Gertrude Langer. An important aspect that Strobl points out in regard to Langer, was her PhD in Art History and Ethnology, achieved prior to fleeing NAZI controlled Austria, for Australia in 1939. Evidence suggests that Langer was able to use her education to build a respected reputation in the local arts world by directly informing the public and acerbly critiquing artworks, which was something that was often hotly criticised due to Australia’s slow uptake of Modernism.

My research explores my homage to the creative methods and issues concerning appropriation in visual art, and the success or failure of appropriation in Postmodernist art in this context, highlighting the practices of selected female Australian Impressionist artists.
The homage in the form of a series of paintings uses autoethnographic and qualitative research methods to analyse my inspiration from Impressionist paintings by newly discovered ancestor Emma Minnie Boyd (1858-1936), and her peers such as Jane Sutherland (1853-1928). I aim to explore how this combination inform my arts practice and aesthetic values in the context of, and contrast to, the current practice and the philosophies of Postmodernist visual art.
An analysis of Postmodernist practice and the concepts of appropriation is conducted in this research, to contrast with how homage and inspiration in painting draws on historical use of a specific palette of colours or compositional styles by artists. These are practices, which I believe, challenge beliefs in current visual arts philosophy and practice based on Roland Barthes’ Death of the Author (Barthes, 1967). While scholarship can be accessed both for and against Postmodernism, my perspective as a researcher and contemporary painter adds a new dimension to the discussion and broaden the scope of visual art to renew concepts of individual unique creativity and appreciation of links to the past.
As Denholm (1997) states:
Too much art now has become mere gesture, playfulness, appropriation, with often a presence of narcissism, with little sense of the beauty found in classical art. What is needed is a new seriousness, a return to more ethical, eternal values, a disavowal of the notion of time as progress, but an awareness of the values of tradition, and an attempt to regain these skills and values, from a sense of sacredness, a sacredness not necessarily based on religion, but a belief that what man or woman creates, has to be solid, to have any value (Denholm, 1997, p. 201).
What Denholm is suggesting concerns the imbalance currently perceived in Postmodern practice and education in fine art considering traditional skills and expertise, which, I argue, are important issues for any genre of visual art-making. Rather than ignoring the lessons of the past, and advances in visual arts practice, in preference for an “it’s all been done before, or all artist’s copy” mentality of appropriation, a balance needs to be met. This is an approach where artists can freely and objectively acknowledge and refer to (but not appropriate) previous artists’ achievements whilst practising in the present.

Janice Mills

BFA (Hons), MA (Journalism), MCA (pending) Produced: 2021

This paper examines examples of visual arts criticism and journalism in Australia during the early 20th-century and contrasts them with current instances and practice. The literature review investigated the role and purpose of arts journalism and visual arts criticism for society, visual arts practice and practitioners focussing on these timeframes; the objective being to clarify if there are clear criteria that can be applied for evaluating the quality and success of critics’ and journalists’ writing, and if critics are fulfilling their roles.
The qualifications and experience of those writing, plus examples of their work, have been analysed in case studies in an effort to learn more about the current content of art journalism and criticism, in contrast to historical examples, if they provide more informed content and unbiased representation of a broad range of Australian visual artists, and If not, why. Furthermore, specific issues such as qualifications, ethics, public engagement, and cultural value were perused in response to the thesis questions regarding the quality of art journalism, and visual art criticism in Australia.
This process revealed historical and recent examples of the variation in the quality and quantity of visual arts journalism and critiquing in Australian news publications. My findings were based on the use of these examples in case studies of Australians who, from between the early 20th-century to the present, have written about visual art. This data inquiry was supported by analysis of the research made by a variety of academics and experts in fields including visual arts, arts criticism and journalistic practice in the literature review.
As a result, evidence indicates that certain arts writers have historically exhibited personal biases, lack of expertise, and poor professionalism in in their writing. However, examples of engaging and informative writing in Australian newspapers from both the past and recent years were also uncovered. This indicated that whilst ‘good’ art criticism may be difficult to find, as news publishers reduce staff for dedicated visual arts columns, exceptional writers do still exist. Based on these findings, issues that require further investigation are whether the hiring practices of news publishers are having an impact on the education of future arts critics and journalists. Additionally, it remains to be asked if an education and practice in the visual arts is worthwhile when considering a future in the media, particularly if dedicated arts journalism is being progressively replaced by generic roles such as ‘cultural’ or entertainment reporting.

Lessons from Australian Impressionism inform a new direction to lines and abstract application Anyone looking at this artist's work roughly a decade ago, would have predicted a safe journey through the well-trodden path of traditional Australian Impressionist painting. This is not to say that it doesn't have a place in contemporary Australia, because the number of artists inspired by this genre proves that there is a market for painting produced using the same topics and methods as they were over a century ago.

According to Plato, the artist merely copies physical reality, which in itself, is a poorer copy of the realm of Forms. An argument that became the basis for conjecture into the 19th century (Shiff, 1984. pp. 38-46). Plato’s assumption is that artists ‘hold’ a mirror to the world, making them imposters, deliberately trying to copy the reality they see in the reflection. Artists, particularly contemporary painters, strive for more than a deceptive mimesis of either the world or another artwork.
But where does Postmodernism and appropriation lie in this argument?
In a Postmodern era, artists are faced with an overwhelming supply of artistic examples, material, and stimulation. Funch says, in reference to Gergen, “New technologies have resulted in an enormous barrage of social stimulation, which has major implications for human life and identity today. This barrage of stimulation has resulted in a state of saturation, and, Without having the means to control the situation people lose their autonomy” (2013, p. 173; Gergen, 2000).

Beauty is timeless, or is it? In this paper I will argue that modern Impressionism inherits the foundation of an authentic standard of beauty, understood by Australian painters like Frederick McCubbin (1855-1917) and Jane Sutherland (1853-1928) , and is both relevant and beautiful in a 21st century context. My argument will briefly review the philosophies of Plato and Aristotle, 18th to 20th century Europe, consider the biases of 19th century art critics, and note the anti-aesthetic movement of the 20th century. I will also present examples of bias against, and the continued popularity of Impressionism into the 21st century to support my hypothesis that modern Impressionism is relevant and beautiful.

What are the differences we need to take into account when teaching art to children in contrast to adults? Do we need to shy away from teaching technical fundamentals of creating art, or can children from the approximate age of 8 years understand some of the basic abstract concepts of fine art education such as tone, colour theory or composition?

This paper examines examples of visual arts criticism and journalism in Australia during the early 20th-century and contrasts them with current instances and practice. The literature review investigated the role and purpose of arts journalism and visual arts criticism for society, visual arts practice and practitioners focussing on these timeframes; the objective being to clarify if there are clear criteria that can be applied for evaluating the quality and success of critics’ and journalists’ writing, and if critics are fulfilling their roles.
The qualifications and experience of those writing, plus examples of their work, have been analysed in case studies in an effort to learn more about the current content of art journalism and criticism, in contrast to historical examples, if they provide more informed content and unbiased representation of a broad range of Australian visual artists, and If not, why. Furthermore, specific issues such as qualifications, ethics, public engagement, and cultural value were perused in response to the thesis questions regarding the quality of art journalism, and visual art criticism in Australia.
This process revealed historical and recent examples of the variation in the quality and quantity of visual arts journalism and critiquing in Australian news publications. My findings were based on the use of these examples in case studies of Australians who, from between the early 20th-century to the present, have written about visual art. This data inquiry was supported by analysis of the research made by a variety of academics and experts in fields including visual arts, arts criticism and journalistic practice in the literature review.
As a result, evidence indicates that certain arts writers have historically exhibited personal biases, lack of expertise, and poor professionalism in in their writing. However, examples of engaging and informative writing in Australian newspapers from both the past and recent years were also uncovered. This indicated that whilst ‘good’ art criticism may be difficult to find, as news publishers reduce staff for dedicated visual arts columns, exceptional writers do still exist. Based on these findings, issues that require further investigation are whether the hiring practices of news publishers are having an impact on the education of future arts critics and journalists. Additionally, it remains to be asked if an education and practice in the visual arts is worthwhile when considering a future in the media, particularly if dedicated arts journalism is being progressively replaced by generic roles such as ‘cultural’ or entertainment reporting.

Considering anecdotally that major arts events and activities are in major cultural hubs in Australia, like Sydney, Melbourne and possibly Brisbane, the question arises about arts activities in regional and rural areas, and how or if they are covered and promoted. Victoria during the past decade has seen the closure of a large amount of rural and regional papers, with others struggling to stay open.

The advances I have made during academic study, and practical challenges overcome, have provided a far higher understanding of what I do, who I am, and why I am compelled to work in the visual arts world. My research into the history and current state of art critiquing and journalism in Australia provided new insight from a different, but important perspective than that of someone producing artworks as I do as a painter. My case studies of historical and contemporary critics and art journalists proved that my previous understanding about where and when quality and unbiased arts writing and critiquing had been performed was misinformed, which has given me new insight into how this area of the arts in Australia has evolved over the past century.