Art Gallery Welcomes New York Times Chief Art Critic

Art Gallery Welcomes New York Times Chief Art Critic

RICE NEWS
September 30, 1999

Chief art critic for the New York Times Michael Kimmelman will present a lecture at Rice titled “Talking with Artists: Art and the Times” on Sunday, Oct. 17, at 2 p.m. in Sewall Hall, room 301.

The talk will be based on his recent book, “Portraits: Talking With Artists at the Met, the Modern, the Louvre and Elsewhere,” published in 1998.

The book grew out of a series of interviews first published in the New York Times that Kimmelman conducted with 18 artists in museums around the world. Acting as a tour guide, the artists, including Balthus, Francis Bacon, Cindy Sherman and Kiki Smith, highlighted the works they found most influential and inspiring, discussed their own relationships to art history and offered opinions on the museums.

At his lecture, Kimmelman will reflect on his experiences writing the book, touching on the accessibility of contemporary art to the public and the often overlooked distinction between historical value and taste.

Kimmelman has been chief art critic for the Times since 1990. Born and raised in New York City’s Greenwich Village, he graduated from Yale University with a history degree. He earned his graduate degree from Harvard, where he also taught and was an Arthur Kingsley Porter Fellow. He has written for many newspapers and magazines and has lectured throughout the United States and Europe.

The talk is free and open to the public. A reception will follow in the foyer of the Rice University Art Gallery. For more information call (713) 527-6069.