Opinion Why Most Quarantine Art Is Just ‘Empty Heroics’ + Two Other Illuminating Reads From Around the Web A weekly round-up of interesting readings from around the art web. By Ben Davis, May 29, 2020
Opinion How Art History Can Help Explain the Stunning Rise of Conspiracy Theories That Is Defining Our Time This is the second half of a two-part series on art theory and conspiracy theory. By Ben Davis, May 20, 2020
Opinion Why Conspiracy Theories Have Become the Most Influential Art Form of Our Time Part 1 of a 2-part essay on art theory and conspiracy. By Ben Davis, May 11, 2020
Opinion The Surprising Lesson Hidden in an Important New History of Political Strikes in the Art World + Two Other Illuminating Reads From Around the Web A weekly round-up of interesting readings from around the art web. By Ben Davis, May 9, 2020
Opinion An Art-World Philosopher Explains Why the Playboy Mansion Is a Cautionary Tale for the Work-From-Home Era + Two Other Interesting Reads A weekly round-up of ideas from around the art web. By Ben Davis, May 2, 2020
Opinion Some Believe Marina Abramovic Is the Satanic Ringleader of a Global Political Conspiracy. That’s Ludicrous. But Here’s What They Get Right We go down the rabbit hole of YouTube videos to find that a recent controversy points to much bigger issues about American culture. By Ben Davis, Apr 20, 2020
Opinion The Art World Needs to Rally Behind the #CancelRent Movement to Save Itself—and Everyone Else, Too Extraordinary measures aren't just just right now. They are necessary. By Ben Davis, Apr 8, 2020
Opinion Why the Centers for Disease Control’s Creepy Illustration of the Coronavirus Is Such an Effective Work of Biomedical Art That image you are seeing everywhere is actually the work of Alissa Eckert and Dan Higgins. By Ben Davis, Apr 1, 2020
Opinion How We Should Reimagine Art’s Mission in the Time of ‘Social Distancing’ Passive cultural consumption is going to make us feel disempowered and alienated just when we need to maintain social connection. By Ben Davis, Mar 23, 2020
Opinion Debating the Stakes of Criticism for Indigenous Artists + Two Other Thought-Provoking Things to Read (or Watch) From Around the Art Web A weekly digest of what's interesting in art media. By Ben Davis, Mar 14, 2020
Opinion How to Understand the ‘Millennial Aesthetic’ + Two Other Thought-Provoking Things to Read (or Watch) From Around the Art Web A weekly digest of what's interesting in art media. By Ben Davis, Mar 6, 2020
Opinion How Gen Z’s Meme Artists Are Reshaping the Political Battlefield + Two Other Illuminating Ideas From Around the Web Plus, an epistolary exchange highlights the plight of Chilean artists and Art Spiegelman surveys the work of Rube Goldberg. By Ben Davis, Feb 26, 2020
Opinion Why a New Yorker Cartoonist Is Up in Arms About Appropriation Art + Another Illuminating Idea From Around the Web Plus, America's most popular picture is of a dog on a toilet. By Ben Davis, Feb 12, 2020
Opinion What Shaker Furniture Can Teach Us About the ‘New Minimalist’ Trend + Two Other Illuminating Pieces of Criticism From Around the Web Plus, considerations on John Cage's revolt against Musak, and the rise of "Rural Futurism." By Ben Davis, Feb 7, 2020
Opinion The 100 Works of Art That Defined the Decade, Ranked: Part 4 In the final installment of this four-part series, our critic reveals his picks—number 25 through number 1—of the key artworks of the 2010s. By Ben Davis, Jan 1, 2020