The Death of the Critic

In an age of book clubs, celebrity endorsements and a blogosphere staffed with thousands of amateur critics, what role is there for the professional critic as an arbiter of artistic value? Is cultural value just a matter of personal taste, with one opinion as good as any other? What function does professional criticism fulfil now, and should we lament the passing of the authority which previous generations of critics enjoyed?

Come and find out, as the ICA has assembled a line-up of expert speakers for this unique and unmissable event:

John Sutherland (author The Boy Who Loved Books)

Michael Coveney (whatsonstage.com)

Rachel Bowlby (author Carried Away)

Adrian Searle (The Guardian)

Chair: Ronan McDonald (author The Death of the Critic)

The ICA is located on The Mall, London SW1.
Open Monday 12pm-11pm, Tues-Sat 12pm-1am, Sunday 12pm-10.30pm
Galleries open daily 12pm-7.30pm during exhibitions

Extended Reading :


The Death of the Critic
Ronan McDonald
Due for release on 27/09/2007

The critic has long been a reviled figure, at best the mere handmaiden of the 'creative' arts, at worst a parasite upon them. For Brendan Behan, critics are like eunuchs in a harem. They know how it is done. They have seen it done every day. But they are unable to do it themselves. In an age of book clubs, celebrity endorsements and internet bloggers, what role is there now for the professional critic as an arbiter of artistic value? Are literature and the arts only a question of personal taste? Is one opinion 'as good as another'?Ronan McDonald's "The Death of the Critic" seeks to defend the role of the public critic. McDonald argues against recent claims that all artistic value is simply relative and subjective. This forceful, accessible and eloquent book considers why high-profile, public critics, such as William Empson, F.R.Leavis or Lionel Trilling, become much rarer in the later twentieth century. A key reason for the 'death of the critic', he believes, is the turn away from value judgements and the very notion of artistic quality amongst academics and scholars. Alert to the cultural and academic climate of both the USA and the UK, this controversial and timely intervention will engage scholars, students, critics and anyone concerned with the role of literary and artistic culture in the public sphere.