作者簡介

特裏·巴雷特（Terry Barrett），美國藝術批評傢，俄亥俄州立大學名譽教授，曾任北德剋薩斯大學藝術教育係教授，曾榮獲美國國傢藝術教育協會“傑齣教學奬”，著有《創作藝術：形式與意義》《為什麼那是藝術:當代藝術的美學和批評》《闡釋藝術：反思、驚詫與反應》《批評藝術：理解當代》等。巴雷特曾舉辦瞭三十多次個展和群展，發錶大量攝影作品和批評文章。目前，巴雷特仍任職於美國國傢藝術教育協會、德剋薩斯藝術教育協會、藝術理論與教育基金會（FATE）以及院校藝術協會等機構。巴雷特是美國當下頗具纔華、知名度極高的當代藝術問題專傢，他關於當代藝術及其批評、美學及藝術教育的諸多書籍、文選和文章，自成係統，深入淺齣，讀者廣泛，幾經再版，對相當領域産生瞭重要影響。

譯者簡介

徐文濤，現代公共視覺藝術設計研究中心研究員，湖北美術學院油畫係教授、副主任、碩士生導師。

鄧峻，武漢大學國際法係畢業，留學後落戶香港，在國際律師行、私募基金和私企從事律師工作近二十年，從未停止對視覺、音樂和文字藝術的熱愛。

Why Is That Art? addresses common questions that viewers raise about contemporary art: Why is that art? Why is it in an art museum? Who says it's art? If I did this, would it be art? Why is it good? Covering a broad, diverse, and engaging sampling of works--abstract and representational painting, monumental sculpture, performance art, video installations, films, and photographs--author Terry Barrett responds to these questions using three sources: the artists who created the works, philosophers of art, and art critics. Introducing students to a variety of established theories of art, he presents the traditional sets of criteria of Realism, Expressionism, and Formalism, which are in turn updated by recent sources of Poststructuralism. Barrett applies each of these theories to challenging works of contemporary art, pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of each mode of interpretation. He encourages students to consider many criteria when evaluating an artwork, to critically examine judgments made by others, and to make informed judgments of their own.