A Year in the Art World: An Insider's View Paperback – September 19, 2023

I look into the art world behind the scenes. Easy to read, yet tons of interesting information about all aspects of the art world.

I especially enjoyed reading about the art critic and art writer Jarrett Earnest. His comments about the state of art writing and where it is headed despite very difficult headwinds (no one pays much for art criticism, no one reads art criticism, no one reads...) were hopeful nonetheless. He also hinted at the concerns of art and artists today with dumping established elites yet needing something to replace it. He was an inspiration to me because he chose to write about the people who write about art. Brilliant!The section on curators was also fascinating to me because I realized that although curators are very influential to new art and artists, they still must conform to the status quo, dictated or nudged by benefactors and board members. The choices curators make can make or deny the trajectory of art production today.I also cited several one- and two-star reviews for Abuse because they were mean-spirited attacks with no cited examples. As someone from the hinterlands wishing to learn about recent art activities in far-flung places, I found this book to be informative and entertaining. Good on you, Matthew Israel!Jimmie FroehlichAnchorage

Fairly comprehensive in terms of the breadth of topic it covers (although curiously there is no chapter focus on actual collectors), but also fairly superficial in that few topics are covered in any depth and many chapters are way too short to be informative.The structure the author chooses (interviewing someone related to the topic of each chapter) has great potential, but the lack of detail and depth means that the strategy does not fulfill its potential.

The topics covered are okay, but the writing style is somewhat pedestrian. Does not compare well to Seven Days in the Art World.

From the cover I expected a lighthearted, entertaining look at the art world. Instead it was dry and preachy. Prepare yourself for the obligatory tally of art world professionals by race and ethnicity, along with lamenting about how such and such group is underrepresented. The final straw was when the book introduced the story of a "gay", "immigrant" artist. Please. Is being gay really an obstacle in the art world? As for the "immigrant" part, you'd probably picture someone struggling with English and trying to earn a living wage. Well, I lost it when the particular "immigrant" in this story was revealed to be British mega-millionaire artist David Hockney, who has divided his life between the UK and Southern California. At that point I put the book down for good. I don't appreciate this shallow way of looking at people based on their victim categories. And I doubt David Hockney -- someone who exudes confidence and gusto -- would either.