Barry Schwabsky

Art Critic

Barry Schwabsky is the art critic of The Nation.

Where Does Art Belong?

Where Does Art Belong? Where Does Art Belong?

A trio of recent shows—from Hilma af Klint, Warhol, and Bruce Nauman—propose radically different answers to that question. 

Feb 4, 2019 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

The Last Great Literary Painter

The Last Great Literary Painter The Last Great Literary Painter

The legacy of Eugène Delacroix. 

Jan 7, 2019 / Barry Schwabsky

The Triumph of the Brooklyn Museum’s ‘Soul of a Nation’

The Triumph of the Brooklyn Museum’s ‘Soul of a Nation’ The Triumph of the Brooklyn Museum’s ‘Soul of a Nation’

The landmark exhibit captures the revolutionary spirit and powerful introspection of black art in the 1960s and ’70s.

Dec 14, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

In Praise of Underdogs

In Praise of Underdogs In Praise of Underdogs

Three recent New York gallery shows offer a glimpse into the wonderful work happening in the shadows of the mainstream art market.

Oct 29, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

A History of Salvage

A History of Salvage A History of Salvage

The Met’s “History Refused to Die” exhibition rewrites the art history of the American South through a group of self-taught practitioners.

Oct 18, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

The Women of Impressionism

The Women of Impressionism The Women of Impressionism

Mary Cassatt, Elizabeth Nourse, Berthe Morisot, and Rosa Bonheur were as central to Impressionism’s shifting and often contradictory currents as their male counterparts.

Aug 30, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

Mel Chin’s Social Surrealism

Mel Chin’s Social Surrealism Mel Chin’s Social Surrealism

Lamentations and revivals.

Aug 2, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

The Standard of Pure Abstraction

The Standard of Pure Abstraction The Standard of Pure Abstraction

The painters Joe Overstreet and James Little subvert the demands of representation.

May 24, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

Joan Jonas’s Fragments

Joan Jonas’s Fragments Joan Jonas’s Fragments

More than anything else, time itself is the material Jonas works with, manipulating it as a sculptor might mold clay.

Apr 19, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

John Ashbery’s Day Job

John Ashbery’s Day Job John Ashbery’s Day Job

The poet as art critic.

Mar 14, 2018 / Books & the Arts / Barry Schwabsky

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